Burned
by Constable Paperbag
Summary: When Pyrrha went to fight Cinder that night, she had her loyal partner by her side. Now he was gone, and all that remained were the scars of the past. The Fall of Beacon broke many people, crushed many spirits. It was her duty to carry on and fight. But now she is alone in a confusing world. Would she rise from the ashes of her defeat, or would she just get burned?
1. Chapter 1

**And here we are with the rewrite. Hopefully, I'll get it right this time.**

 **For new folks who haven't read my original story, I say welcome. This a rewrite of the first story I wrote on this site and I intend to do it justice this time. So, without further ado, let's get to it.**

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 **Cover art - powerfulpomegranate**

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Most people would consider running away from a fight to be unbefitting of a huntress, let alone the champion of Mistral. Pyrrha liked to believe that in this case however, they would make an exception.

There were just some battles you didn't fight. No matter how skilled you were, sometimes retreating was the only option. There was a huge difference between bravery and stupidity, and only fools fought hopeless battles. Her instructors and mentors had taught her that much, and it was only now she was beginning to understand that lesson.

This woman was unnatural. She had only caught a glimpse of what she was now capable of with the maiden's power, but it was already enough to know that she was not to be crossed. Pyrrha was strong - one of the strongest people she knew - but how do you fight someone who flies and shoots fireballs with seemingly little effort?

The answer was simple - you don't. Professor Ozpin seemed to know this, despite offering to stay behind to buy them some time to escape. That was the first time she had ever seen the normally calm, stoic man look worried. If that didn't speak volumes about the woman's power, then what did?

So she ran. She ran with all her might. She ran with Jaune following close behind her. She ran until her lungs burned, and she wouldn't stop until she was finally outside.

The journey seemed endless, but eventually, they did reach the exit. They burst through the doors and into the outside world, still running a little more to put as much distance between them and the tower as possible. They came to an eventual stop in the courtyard, panting with exhaustion from how hard they ran. The sudden cold air bit into them, but adrenaline kept the pair from shivering.

Pyrrha looked around the ruined landscape. It looked like a war zone, but it still felt safer than being inside right now. That said, the sight before her did little to ease her worries. Everything was in ruins. Dust shells, destroyed Atlesian knights and even a few Paladins littered the ground. Fresh blood could be seen seeping into the cracks of the earth. In the distance, smoke could be seen rising from Vale, which was shrouded by a red and orange haze.

How had this happened? How had everything gone so wrong so quickly?

It was hauntingly quiet. Not a noise could be heard in the destroyed courtyard, aside from the two of them breathing. The silence was oppressing. She wanted to say something but couldn't find the strength to form words, both from exhaustion and from what she had seen.

"Pyrrha?" Jaune said nervously, breaking the silence. "What was all that?"

She let out a small sigh of relief. Despite all that had happened, at least she still had him by her side.

"Jaune, I-" Before she could finish, a huge explosion rocked the building. Glass went flying as flames burst through the window panes. God, she could feel the heat from here. The shockwave shook the area around them and nearly had them falling onto their backs. Looking up, they saw a trail of flames working its way up to the top of Beacon Tower.

That explosion was her doing. The woman was still alive.

Ozpin had lost…

"Ozpin… no…" Jaune whispered, mirroring what she was thinking. Pyrrha could only stare up in frightened awe.

This was it. This was the end. If not even Ozpin could stand his ground against her, what chance did they have? What chance did any of them have? The power of the Fall Maiden had made this woman unstoppable.

The power that was originally intended for her…

Pyrrha closed her eyes in regret. This was all her doing. None of this would have happened if she had just accepted Ozpin's offer right from the start. Whatever was happening now was a result of her cowardice. Everyone had been relying on her to become the new Fall Maiden, and what did she do? Flee at the first sign of responsibility.

And now everything was burning. Beacon and Vale were both in ruins. Her team and friends were out fighting for their lives. Everything she cared about was being destroyed all because of her. Because of her, that woman had stolen power that was made for her. Whether she liked it or not, that woman was now her responsibility.

As much as her instincts told her to run, there was only one thing that could be done…

"Go."

Jaune looked at her in surprise. "Go?"

"You heard me. Get to Vale and find help. Do it now." She didn't know how long she'd be able to fight off the woman, but at least she would buy him enough time to escape. No one else was dying because of her.

"But what about you? What will you do?"

She sighed and looked back at the tower. She didn't want to answer that. She didn't even want to think about what she was going to do. But that woman still lay in wait and she had to be stopped. Who else could fight her but her?

She turned her head to him again. The thought suddenly dawned on her… this was the last time she would ever get to see him. It had felt like only moments ago when he took her to the funfair to cheer her up. Now she was about to leave him behind, to run off and almost certainly die…

It wasn't fair… but what else was she to do?

"No" Jaune cried, realising what she was intending to do. "No, no way. Pyrrha, you saw what she did to Ozpin. You know how strong she is."

Over his shoulder, she could see an abandoned weapons locker. It was a bit dented, but still in good condition. The lockers were just the right size for someone like him to fit in. She could push him inside and send him somewhere safe. Wherever he landed, at least he'd be far away from the school. He might even be found by someone and taken somewhere safe.

She placed a gentle hand on his breastplate. "I know," she said in a broken voice. "Believe me, I know. But she has to be stopped, Jaune. She's too dangerous to be left alone."

"And how do you plan to stop her?" he snapped. "Not even Ozpin could beat her! What chance do you think you have? Pyrrha, what you're suggesting is suicide!"

If she was quick enough, she could push him inside right now and send him away. He'd be too surprised to have time to react. Not even that, she could just use her semblance to push him in for her. As long as he was safe, that was all that mattered.

"I have to do this," she whispered. "She'd have never gotten those powers if it had been for me. She's my responsibility."

"What? Pyrrha, you're not making any sense." He pushed her hand away and held her shoulders, locking his gaze with hers. "How is she your responsibility? She attacked us first. None of this is your fault!"

"But it is!" she cried. "Everything that's happening right now is because of me!" She gestured to the burning Vale in the distance. "Everything's falling apart because of my decisions. Vale, Beacon, Ozpin, it's all my fault. I know you don't believe me-"

"Of course I don't!" he snapped. "How can you even say that? You didn't ask for any of this. You didn't want this to happen. This is not. Your. Fault!"

She looked at the ground and smiled sadly. She didn't expect him to understand, nor did she need him to. All that mattered was sending him to safety. Every second out here was putting him more at risk. The locker was right there and looked to be still functional. It should've been easy for her.

So why was she hesitating?

His grip on her shoulders tightened. It didn't hurt, but the force was enough to have her meet his eyes again. "Pyrrha, what's really going on here?" he asked firmly. "What was that machine back there in that vault? What does that woman have to do with any of this? Hell, what do _you_ have to do with any of this?"

So many questions, yet she was too busy trying to answer her own - why was he still here? Why hadn't she sent him away already?

"There's no time for that, Jaune," she said. "You need to get out of here. Find Ren, Nora, anyone who can help. You're only gonna get hurt if you stay out here."

"I'm not going anywhere without you," he growled. "If I'm leaving, then so are you. There's no way in hell I'm leaving you alone with that woman."

"We don't have a choice. Just run while you still can. This is not your fight."

"It's not yours either!"

"I have to face her!" she cried. "This is all my doing. This is… it's _destiny._ "

Her hands touched his breastplate again. She tried forcing her arms to move forward, yet for all her strength they barely moved an inch. He probably didn't even feel what she was trying to do.

Gods, why was this so hard!? What was the matter with her!?

"Pyrrha, this isn't you," he said softly. "You've never spoken like this before. What's going on here?"

And then she saw it. Tearing her gaze away from the locker, she caught the look in his eyes.

Despite everything falling apart around them, her partner was only concerned about her. His bright blue eyes were locked solely on her. The chaos didn't concern him. She was his main priority.

She understood her reason for not dismissing him from the beginning. She always knew, but now it was impossible to deny it.

She didn't want him to leave.

Not like this. Not in a situation built on lies and secrets. If this truly was the last time they would ever see each other, he deserved some closure. And maybe then he would understand why things had to be the way that they were.

"Jaune… what's your favourite fairy tale?"

The boy blinked in shock. "My favourite what?"

"Heh, forget it," she chuckled lightly. "Ozpin explained it better than me. Let's just say, not all stories are simply fiction. Some are truer than others. You ever hear the one about the Four Maidens?"

"Um, yeah? My mom used to read it to me all the time as a kid." He shook his head and looked sharply at her. "But wait, what has that got to do with anything?"

"I'm getting to that," she sighed. "You remember when we went down in the vault and there was another person in the machine?" She met his eyes with a steely gaze. "What if I told you she was the Fall Maiden of the story? Or, to be more specific, the current incarnation of her?"

Jaune stared at her in disbelief. "What are you saying, Pyrrha?"

"They're real, Jaune. Those women who wielded the power of the seasons, they're real. They still exist to this day." She took a moment to control herself. "And I was supposed to be one of them…"

And so, she told him about the offer Ozpin and the others approached her with. How they wanted her to become their new Fall Maiden by absorbing the soul of the current one. Jaune listened to the whole thing completely dumbfounded by her words. He never said a word as his mouth hung open with shock from her story.

In truth, it felt nice to be finally able to tell this story to someone else. The day Ozpin had asked her to become the new Maiden was the day her world on its head. She carried her secret like an iron ball around her ankle and it felt twice as heavy to deal with. Despite the current situation, to finally be able to talk about it felt strangely liberating.

If only the freedom could be long-lasting...

"What would have happened to you if you followed through with the procedure?" he whispered, horrified by what she was saying.

"I don't know," she said. "Not even Ozpin knew. I would've absorbed the Maiden's powers, but as for what would become of _me_? There was no way of telling."

"And yet Ozpin asked you to do it anyway?" he growled, sudden anger appearing in his tone. "What the hell was he thinking!?"

"It would've been for the good of everyone," she said quickly. She was a little surprised to hear herself defending the headmaster for placing this burden on her, but she couldn't deny that his intentions were pure. "Try to understand. By making me the Fall Maiden, the kingdoms would've been safer. He had everyone's best interests at heart."

"I'm not saying he didn't," he grumbled. "But why did he choose _you_? Why did he force this decision on you, rather than anyone else? You're just a teenager, Pyrrha!"

"I think it was because of my skills," she muttered. Her reputation as the Invincible Girl followed her everywhere and she did a fine job of living up to it. "He recognised my talents, so he must have thought I was the best option."

"Who cares about your skills!? You're still a teenager!" he cried. "He was asking a kid to accept that level of responsibility!? I'm sorry, Pyrrha, but that was wrong of him. He shouldn't have done that to you."

She smiled sadly at him. Trust him of all people to see her as still a normal teenager. Despite how often public placed her on a pedestal, he always viewed her as his equal. He was wonderful like that. She was gonna miss him.

"That's why you've been acting strange recently," he gasped. "You've been thinking about this all this time, haven't you?"

She shifted under his gaze. "I was scared," she weakly admitted. "What he was offering… it was too big for me to even comprehend. I didn't know what the right decision to make was. So I ended up stalling for time. It was cowardly, I know, but I-"

She was cut off when he pulled her into a sudden, but gentle hug. Her head rested against his shoulder while his hand gently stroked her hair. For a moment she stood there stunned, shocked at the sudden display of affection. It was only when she realised what was happening and felt the heat from his body did she hug back.

His arms felt safer and warmer than that machine she had been in moments ago. His mere presence alone made her briefly forget the carnage around them and finally feel safe for a change. She felt the weight of her burdens disappear as she leaned into his touch, allowing herself to close her eyes and enjoy the moment. It was moments like this that made her love having him as her partner.

That made her love him…

"God, Pyrrha, I can't even imagine what you must have gone through," he whispered softly. "I'm sorry you had to deal with all of that without us."

She giggled lightly against his shoulder. Apologising was usually her thing, especially considering how her cowardice was the cause of all this. Well, no more. She was done running away from her responsibility. She had let Beacon and her friends down once already. She wasn't about to do it again. It was time to finish this.

As much as it pained her to do so, she gently removed herself from his warm embrace. At least she had able to end things on a more happier note. That bit of knowledge raised her spirits, if only by a little bit.

"Now do you understand, Jaune? Why I have to do this?" she asked him. "Because of my hesitation, I allowed that woman to come in and steal the Maiden's power. Do you understand why this is all my fault?"

"This doesn't change anything, Pyrrha," he muttered. "Of course you didn't say yes immediately. No one would. You're not a coward for not accepting a strange offer right away. You were just being careful."

She shrugged. "Regardless, she still wouldn't have gotten that power had I just accepted it in the first place. I know I didn't want or expect any of this to happen, but this is my doing. I have to make things right, or at least try to."

Judging from how strong the woman had become, it was likely going to be the latter that was about to happen. She tried telling herself that she had come to peace with that, but she never was very good at lying, not even to herself. Being here with Jaune reminded her how much she desperately wanted to live.

But she wasn't going to shy away from her duty, even if it did frighten her… Oh God, she didn't want to die...

Jaune stared silently at her. His expression was hard to read. He looked so defeated, but it seemed like he had accepted what she was trying to say. "You're really serious about fighting her, aren't you?" he said quietly.

She tried smiling at him, but it was hard. "There's no other way," she said weakly. "I'm the only one who has a chance of stopping her."

"And there's nothing I can do to convince you otherwise?"

"I'm sorry, Jaune."

He held her gaze for a few moments before lowering his head in defeat. "Alright then," he whispered.

She nodded silently and turned her back on him. She could feel tears tickling her eyes and she wanted to spare him the sight of seeing her cry. She didn't want his last memory of her to be one of misery. She wanted him to remember all the good times they had together. That afternoon at the funfair came to mind.

It was the sound of a sword being unsheathed that caused her to turn around.

When she looked back at him, he was standing up straighter with his weapon drawn out. He had even folded out his shield. While she stared at him confused, he looked back at her with newfound determination. "Ready to do this?" he asked her.

Do what? What was he…

Oh, no…

No, no, no, no, no!

"What do you think you think you're doing?" she gasped, horrified at what she was seeing. "You're not coming with me!"

"You said it yourself, Pyrrha. I can't convince you to leave." He walked closer to her and she didn't miss the nervous wobble in his step. "And I've already said I'm not leaving you alone with that woman. So the way I see it, there's only one thing I can do."

"Yes, and that's to leave this place!" she cried. "We have no idea what that woman is capable of! You don't stand a chance against her!"

"No more than you do," he grunted. "But if we fight together, we might be able to last long enough for backup to arrive." He fished out his scroll and starting looking through his contacts. "I'll call Ren, Nora, and Team RWBY now. I'll tell them what we're doing and to come to our location."

"There is no _we_ in this, Jaune!" she shouted. "I'm telling you to go! You need to be somewhere safe!"

"So you can go out and die alone to that woman? I don't think so."

"But, Jaune-"

"How could I live with myself?" he barked. "How could I carry on knowing that when my partner fought trying to save everyone, I was miles away from her in her time of need? I wouldn't, because I know I would have failed you!" He closed his eyes and groaned. "So please, let me help you. For your sake and mine."

For a moment, she was briefly reminded of that time he had complained about 'being the idiot stuck in the tree' as he had put it that night on the roof. Even though she had promised to never treat him like that, that promise didn't really apply to this situation. True, they probably stood a better chance fighting together, but the most likely outcome would be that they would both die.

Why should he have to make that sacrifice on her behalf? It wasn't fair to him, even if he didn't realise it yet. Her eyes caught the site of the weapons locker again.

"Jaune… that wasn't a request," she said seriously. Flexing her fingers, she activated her semblance. His armour and weapons glowed black, rooting him to the spot. Jaune looked surprised as he found himself bound by her power. "You are leaving this place. I will not allow you to risk your life because of my mistakes."

He struggled against the invisible hand that gripped him. "Pyrrha, you don't want to do this," he grunted.

"Yes, I do. You need to be safe, Jaune."

"I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about fighting her by yourself." Her hold on him faltered a little from his words. "You know what I mean, Pyrrha. You're as scared as I am to face her."

"I'm doing what has to be done," she growled.

"But you don't want to," he countered. "Not by yourself, at least. And you don't have to, I'm right here. You're not alone in this anymore, Pyrrha. You don't have to do everything by yourself-"

"Enough!" she snapped. "This is for your own good. Yes, I'm scared, and yes, I don't know what will happen to me. But that doesn't mean you have to get hurt too. So you will leave, or so help me, I will make you leave."

To emphasise her point, she used her semblance to push his body back a little. He had given up trying to fight against her, but he still looked up at her with desperate eyes.

"Then prove it," he said. "I know you don't believe what you say, so prove me wrong. Go on, send me away. We know you can do it, so what are you waiting for?"

She could do it. She had to do it. Jaune was one of the best things that had ever happened to her, and it was her duty as his partner to protect him. The only way to do that was by sending him somewhere safe. If she had to fight alone, so be it. As long as he was okay, that's all that mattered!

Her hand wobbled as she tried moving him. Her mind was a conflicted mess as her desires and her sense of duty clashed. She wanted him safe more than anything, but… she didn't want him to leave. She just couldn't accept that this would be the last time she would ever see him. The fact that he was so willing to stand by her side didn't help either.

She shouldn't have been feeling like this. This wasn't his fight, it was hers. It was selfish of her to want him to stay. She knew this well, but it did little to change anything.

Gods, why did he have to look at her like that? Why did he have to be so caring and selfless?

Why did he have to make this so difficult?

"Argh!" she shouted as she fell to her knees and slammed her fist against the ground, releasing her hold on him in the process. He stumbled a little from being released but quickly rushed to her side once he found his footing. Her teary eyes were glued to the ground.

Why? Why did she have to be such a coward at a time like this? She didn't want him hurt, but she couldn't bear the idea of being alone again. Not when she had someone like him in her life. Oh God, she was such a mess.

She only looked up again when she saw his hand reaching down to her. That smile she was so familiar with shone down on her. It was a little more nervous than usual, but his eyes still managed to shine in a way that made her heart flutter.

She graciously accepted it and he pulled her up. "That's what I thought," he smiled. "You're not wrong for wanting a little help. That was something you taught me, you know. We're partners, Pyrrha. Whatever the situation, I will always be here for you."

Pyrrha was at a loss for words. She could feel tears in the corner of her eyes again, but she didn't feel sad in the slightest.

He was willing to risk everything for her. For _her_...

For the first time that night, Pyrrha felt genuinely happy. Her duty still loomed over her head, but because of him, it felt a little bit easier to bear. With them fighting together, it almost seemed accomplishable.

 _If_ he was still willing to fight by her side.

"Jaune, I'm going to say this only once," she said firmly. "Are you absolutely certain you want to come with me?" She felt the need to hear him confirm it, just for clarity sake.

"You already know the answer to that."

Well, at least that was reassuring.

"In that case, I'm gonna need you to make me a promise," she said. "When we go up there, don't stray too far from me, and don't make any reckless attacks. These powers have made her extremely dangerous, and I can't protect you if you're too careless."

"You don't need to worry about protecting me," he laughed with a little show of his weapons. "I've gotten pretty used to these things now. I promise I won't be a liability."

Now it was her turn to laugh. This almost felt like old times. If it wasn't looking completely trashed right now, they could've just been having another normal chat in the courtyard. With any luck, they'd be able to continue having talks like this for many more days to come.

Right now though, they had a job to do. _They_ had a job to do.

"Then what are we waiting for?" Pyrrha smiled. "Let's do this, partner."

[/]

Walking back through Beacon's hallways felt strange, considering how they had been running for their lives out of them mere moments ago. Now they were returning to the very thing they had been running away from. She had to laugh at their own craziness.

Jaune had called their team and Team RWBY before they headed back inside, telling them to get back to Beacon as quick as they could. He told them that they were about to fight the woman responsible for all this and that they needed backup as soon as possible. Whether they could hold out long enough for them to arrive was something she didn't want to think about.

It was haunting to see Beacon so desolate. The now empty hallways used to be alive with the hustle and bustle of everyday activity. To see her home away from home look so abandoned hurt her. Hopefully, if they won they'd be able to rebuild, but it would take a long time to recover from an attack like this.

She turned to her partner who was still following loyally behind her. It was hard to ignore his shaking hands and the sound of his teeth chattering. Despite wanting to stand by her, he was still clearly terrified of what lay ahead. She was too, but it seemed she had more control than what he did.

"Are you okay, Jaune?" she asked him.

He jumped at the sound of her voice but quickly recovered. "Y-Yeah, I'm fine," he chuckled nervously. "Just first nerves, you know? It's not every day you fight a woman with the powers of a god."

"Don't think about it like that," she giggled. Even though she was handling better than him, she could feel the nervousness beginning to creep into her voice too. She took her hand in his, and whilst she did it mostly to comfort him, she took a little enjoyment in the way his hand felt in hers. "And don't worry about the fight. I told you, I'll be watching over you."

He nodded. "Yeah, me too." They carried on in silence for a little while before he started chuckling again. "You know, it was nice to see you open up back there. I know things aren't great right now, but me, Ren and Nora have been worried about you ever since you started feeling down. It was good to see you look happy again, is what I'm trying to say."

She laughed lightly at the observation, which ended with a sigh. "I never expected to reveal what happened. I'm not sure I was ever going to. Keeping it to myself seemed like the only way to deal with it. Gods, I was so confused."

He squeezed her hand in a reassuring manner. The sensation sent a familiar tingling feeling shooting through her body. "Let's make a deal then," he said. "When we get out of here, no more secrets. We'll be totally honest with each other at all times."

"Yes, of course," she nodded. "One hundred percent honesty…"

She sighed internally. She was gonna have to admit her feelings for him one day. Of all the secrets she had, that was also a difficult one to reveal. She considered admitting it to him earlier out in the courtyard. Even now, she was considering telling him before they went up. There was no telling what was going to happen, so why hide things now?

But she decided against it. Such a confession might end up distracting him. They both needed to be completely focused if they wanted to survive. But she swore, if they got out of this alive, she would tell him the second she got the chance to. No more secrets, as he said.

After a while, they approached the elevator that had brought them to the vault. Alas, it was completely trashed and inoperable, likely a cause of when the woman used her new powers to ascend to the top of the tower.

"No way we're travelling in this," Jaune muttered. "Guess we're taking the stairs. Greeeat."

Pyrrha considered what he said. It was a lot of stairs on the way to the top. It would probably take too long to walk up all of them. Time was of the essence, and they had wasted enough back there. Pyrrha then looked back at the ruined elevator. There was an awful lot of metal inside…

"I have an idea," Pyrrha said, "It won't be easy, but I can use my semblance to make the elevator bring us up to the top."

"Uh, Pyrrha… are you sure that's safe?" Jaune said, looking at the wreck before him. A spark suddenly flew from inside the elevator to emphasise his point.

"Well it's better than walking, wouldn't you agree?" Pyrrha said with a smirk.

Jaune sighed and made his way inside with her following. The inside of it was a mess. There were holes everywhere and the circuits were fried. Oh yes, using her semblance was the only way to get this thing moving.

"You might want to hold on to something," she said as she flexed her fingers. Lifting something like this was gonna require all of her focus and power. She just hoped she was up for the task. Jaune in the meantime was scrambling around for something to hold on to, eventually finding a handrail that miraculously wasn't torn of the wall.

Once he was secure, she activated her semblance and the elevator started moving. It was by no means an easy feat. She had never used her semblance on such a large object before, and she felt the entire weight of the elevator all around her. Regardless, she endured its weight and used all her might to launch it upwards.

The elevator moved at incredible speed, shooting its way up to the top of the tower. Pyrrha stood firm against the speed as she continued pushing the elevator up, whereas poor Jaune looked like he was pushing down the contents of his stomach. She had almost forgotten about his infamous motion sickness. She would've thought adrenaline would help cancel it out, but that didn't seem to be the case.

Her focus was brought back when she realised they had reached their destination. Her heart was beating furiously in her chest. This was it. Despite how scared she was feeling, she refused to let that woman see any signs of fear. Instead, she would show her how the Champion of Mistral hunts monsters…

"Get ready for anything," she whispered to him. He responded with a shaky nod of the head.

The doors opened and they immediately filed out, weapons brandished at the ready. Ozpin's office had been spared any of the destruction the rest of the school suffered. The only imperfection being the woman who had caused all this devastation was inside it.

She was standing at the end of the room with her back to them, gazing out the window at all the destruction she had caused. Her reflection was clear in the window. She had raven-black hair, fierce amber eyes and flawless pale skin. Yes, Pyrrha would admit, she was a strikingly beautiful woman. Unfortunately, beauty would not be enough to protect her.

The woman turned her head to the sound of them entering. "Oh, it's you two," she said in smooth, casual voice. "What do you want?"

What did they… what did they want!?

Pyrrha's grip on her weapon tightened. This woman dared to infiltrate their school, attack it with an army of Grimm and terrorists, and then act like nothing happened!? She didn't even sound threatened by the pair of them. How could one woman be so twisted!?

"Nothing to say?" she said, turning her gaze back to the window. "In that case, would you mind leaving me alone? The view from up here is lovely and I'd prefer to enjoy it in peace."

"Where's Ozpin?" Pyrrha growled. She had had enough of this woman's disgustingly cocky attitude. "What have you done with him?"

"What do you think?"

Pyrrha's heart raced. So it was true. Ozpin was dead. That woman had killed him…

No. She couldn't let fear get the best of her now. She had to stand her ground. They both did. She barely had time to focus on her fear when Jaune spoke up.

"Pyrrha, I recognise her," he gasped. "She's one of the transfer students from Haven. She's on the same team as Emerald and Mercury. Her name's Cinder, I think."

Frowning, she realised that the woman did look a little familiar. They had never interacted, but she had seen her fight in the tournament. Even without powers, she was still one to be reckoned with. Although she would never admit it, she liked her chances even less now.

The observation was enough to get the woman - apparently named Cinder - to turn her head. A sly grin was on her face as she addressed them. "Lucky guess," she chuckled. "I suppose it's only fair you know a little about me. After all, I already know plenty about you." She raised a hand and pointed a finger her way. "Especially you, _Pyrrha Nikos_."

Pyrrha's face paled. Even though she was used to people recognising her, it was never a good sign when a murderer knew your name. And was it just her, or did she sneer her name when she said it?

Cinder took a couple steps forward, her finger still pointing at her. "Yes, I know a lot about you. Ozpin's little pet project. I knew he was grooming students to take Amber's place, but I had a feeling he'd choose you out of everyone else. An already strong girl made even more powerful without having to work for it." Her eyes flared for the briefest of moments. "That… wouldn't have been fair to me if that happened."

The bitter look in her eyes, the steel edge in her otherwise calm tone…

Was Cinder angry at her?

About what? Just because Ozpin selected her to be the new Fall Maiden? She wanted to scream at her that she didn't ask for that kind of power. That the decision plagued her every waking thought. There was nothing about her situation to be jealous of!

It felt like it would be a wasted effort, though. Cinder seemed to have had already made up her mind. The time for negotiations had passed the moment she had invaded the school.

Her finger then pointed at Jaune. "You, however, were of no real importance. All I remembered of you was of that one time in a combat lesson. I remember watching you fight and thinking to myself, 'how on earth did someone like him find his way into Beacon?'"

"I'm stronger than you think," he snarled.

"That's not saying much, I'm afraid," she laughed. "Now go, run along. I'm in a very good mood today and I don't need to kill any more of you now. Consider this a mercy, or better yet, a day off school."

"We're not going anywhere!" Pyrrha snapped. "And you won't be killing anyone else. For all those who have suffered and died tonight, we're here to bring you to justice!"

"Are you now?" she smirked. "Even after everything you've seen, you still think you have a chance?" She began to hover in the air and held out her hands. Two huge flames suddenly materialised in her palms. "I am the Fall Maiden, girl. Nothing you can do can harm me."

"Your power doesn't scare us," she snarled. "Maiden or not, we will defeat you."

Cinder said nothing as she hovered in the air, the flames in her hands still crackling with life. After a moment of staring them down, she rolled her eyes. "Let it never be said that I didn't give you a chance to leave," she sighed before launching the flames at the pair.

Instincts kicked in and Pyrrha rolled out of the way of the incoming flame. The fireball narrowly missed her and hit the wall behind her, exploding on impact. Jaune was slower to react but successfully blocked the fireball with his shield. The impact knocked him off his feet though, and his body went flying backwards, crashing into the wall behind him. He groaned in pain as he struggled to get back up.

Meanwhile, Pyrrha charged at Cinder with her spear at the ready. She threw her shield at her head, which Cinder dodged so casually it was like she wasn't even trying. No matter, as the shield was already heading back around, aiming straight for the back of Cinder's head. When she was close enough, Pyrrha lunged at her with her spear.

Unfortunately, Cinder somehow anticipated the shield coming back around. She grabbed it before it could hit her without even looking at it and blocked the spear. Pyrrha's surprise allowed her to slam the shield against her face, knocking her to the side. Grabbing Pyrrha by the neck, she threw her at Jaune, who was still trying to find his feet. The pair crashed into each other, lying in a crumpled mess on the floor.

"Pathetic," Cinder sneered. "This is a waste of your time and lives." She shot a fireball at the elevator they had used, destroying it beyond repair. "But I already gave you a chance to run. If you're going to live like hunters, you might as well die like them too."

Pyrrha's knees wobbled as she tried standing up again. It had been a while since she took a hit like that before. After so many flawless wins, she had almost forgotten what pain felt like. It wasn't a pleasant reminder.

Quickly transforming her spear into a rifle, she fired several shots at Cinder. The woman in red lazily waved her hand and a pillar of flames rose out of the ground. Those bullets never even touched her. Out from the flames came another fireball heading straight for her. She was more prepared for this one though and dodged out of the way. Back on her feet, Pyrrha began running around the side of Cinder in the hopes of flanking her.

A stream of flames followed her as she tried to get around her. They never touched her, but she could feel their heat tickling her back, threatening to burn the skin. Pyrrha continued to shoot, but each bullet fired was blocked by flames.

Deciding to close the distance again, Pyrrha charged at Cinder with her shield raised. Cinder responded by firing a powerful stream of flames directly at her. Pyrrha's attack halted as she quickly blocked the stream heading her way Her knees buckled from the force of the flames, causing her to drop to one knee. She held them off to the best of her ability, but it was like trying to block a million fiery fists all at once.

Some of the flames managed to get around the shield, licking her skin and burning the vulnerable flesh. Aura protected her from serious damage, but the flames still had her hissing in pain. Her shield arm was beginning to wobble. Her stance was faltering. Over her shield, she could see Cinder wearing that same smirk as before. That vile woman was enjoying this.

The stream suddenly stopped when Jaune smacked Cinder in the back of her head with his shield. Her partner had somehow managed to sneak up behind her when they weren't looking. Cinder yelped in surprise and stumbled forward, cutting off the flames instantly.

Jaune shot Pyrrha a nervous grin, to which she responded with a nod as thanks for the save. But despite their small victory, the battle was far from over.

Snarling, Cinder whipped around to meet Jaune and grabbed him by the throat, squeezing it tightly and applying heat to her palm. A small line of smoke could be seen coming from her hand. Using her power, she hovered in the air again and dragged him up with her.

Jaune coughed and spluttered in her grip. His eyes were clenched shut from the feeling of being choked and burned at the same time. He dropped his weapons trying to pry himself loose, but Cinder's hand squeezed like a vice around his neck.

Fuming with rage, Pyrrha threw her shield at Cinder, which she caught just as easily as before. But with no hands to defend herself, Pyrrha fired several more shots at her, forcing her to drop Jaune and block the bullets. Jaune fell to the ground, wheezing as he felt air fill his lungs again. A painfully red handprint could be seen on his neck.

Still holding her shield, Cinder flew towards Pyrrha with the face of the shield heading straight for her. Pyrrha met the attack by blocking it with her spear, pushing against the shield and the woman behind it. Their eyes were locked in a heated staredown as they clashed against each other.

Jaune was already jumping back into the fray, charging in with his sword at the ready. Cinder anticipated him this time and blocked his strike by materialising a curved black blade in her hand. Unable to cope with the force of both of them, her arm collapsed under the force of Pyrrha's strength, allowing her to swipe at her with her spear.

Cinder cried out in pain and Jaune slammed her with his shield, not giving her a chance to recover. The hit had her stumbling backwards, nearly knocking her off her feet. Her body stumbled as she tried to regain her footing.

This was it! They were winning this!

Transforming Milo back into a rifle, Pyrrha fired more rounds at her. Without the means to defend herself, the bullets hit their mark and exploded on impact. With each hit, Cinder was sent further back, her body flailing from the force of the impact. Jaune took the opportunity to slash at her with his sword in a mighty swing that forced her to one knee. Cinder's cries of pain were matched only by her exhausted breathing, sweat dripping down her head.

To finish it off, Pyrrha launched her shield at Cinder's tired body, the weapon crashing into her and sending her flying. Her body smashed against the window, but the reinforced glass prevented her from breaking it. Cinder dropped to the floor the second Pyrrha used her semblance to retrieve her shield, landing face first on the floor.

She made no effort to get back up...

For a moment, Pyrrha and Jaune took a moment to believe what just happened. The pair looked at each other, laughing tiredly from the absurdity of what they had just accomplished.

They had won. They had faced the Fall Maiden and they won.

It seemed almost too good to be true.

"We did it," Jaune laughed, stumbling his way over to her. His words came out slow and forced due to his heavy breathing. "This will be… quite the story... to tell the guys, huh?"

Pyrrha chuckled weakly and threw her arms around him in a victory hug. To think she was worried about bringing him along. Without him, she probably would've lost on her own. This was the reason why he was made team leader - when given the chance, his wisdom helped overcome any situation.

"Let's not lose focus now," she said. "We need to keep an eye on her until Team RWBY comes. Then we can figure out what we're gonna do to her."

"Understood," he smiled. "Though it doesn't look like she's going anywhere anytime soon-"

A growl cut him off as the woman on the floor slowly made her way back onto her feet. Her body trembled with each movement, and her face was hidden behind her ashen-black hair. When she looked up at them, her eyes were glowing from red-hot fury. Her lips were twisted into a ferocious snarl.

Using her powers, she made herself hover in the air, glaring down at them with absolute malice. The pair could practically feel the power radiating from her. The calm demeanour she had once possessed was long gone. Stood in its place was a being of pure hate and rage.

It made her terrifying to look at.

"I've had enough of this," she hissed. Her tone was quiet and dripping with venom. "There is always someone in my way. No matter how far I've come, no matter what I do, there is always someone trying to stop me from obtaining what is mine. Even now after I've won, I'm being challenged by children. _Children!_ And they think that they've beaten me!?"

Her body became encased in flames until all that was left of her was black silhouette hidden beneath a shroud of fire, recognisable by her glowing eyes that burned brighter than the flames surrounding her. Pyrrha and Jaune raised their shields and expected the worst.

"Is this just a game to you!?" her voice roared. "I've given up everything to be here! This power is mine by right. You think you can take it away from me? What more do I have to prove!?"

The room shook from the power her rage was unleashing. The air felt incredibly hot and almost burned her lungs to breath in. Pyrrha's grip on her weapons shook as her fingers trembled with fear. Was this the power of a maiden? Earlier on, Pyrrha thought she might've stood some sort of a change against her as long as she fought well. Looking up at her now, the terrible truth finally dawned on her.

Neither of them stood a chance in hell.

"I will never surrender," she seethed. "The power of the Maiden is mine! All of it is mine! It shall never be yours!"

With one final roar of fury, the body of flames surrounding her exploded all around them. A scorching hot wind washed over Pyrrha as they were both sent flying. Her eyes swam in her head from the bright light that accompanied the explosion, and every ounce of strength in her body was punched out of her.

She was unconscious before she even hit the ground.

[/]

A world of orange greeted Pyrrha when she awoke. The night sky had been made even darker with the stars hidden beneath a thick blanket of smoke. It was odd how she was even able to see the sky from inside without looking out the window. As she lay on her back staring at the ceiling, realisation hit her.

She wasn't inside. There was no ceiling.

Everything hurt. She hissed in agony as she tried turning her head. Her body was battered and covered in dirt. The pain was at least a reminder that she had survived Cinder's attack. But it looked like the explosion had completely obliterated the room they were once fighting in.

A wall of fire now surrounded her. Huge, monstrous flames closed in around her and threatened to strip the flesh from her bones. The heat alone nearly had her passing out again. The smoke from them stung her eyes and filled her lungs. Being so close to them, it felt like her body was going to explode.

"Jaune?" she called out amidst the roar of the flames. She tried adding more strength to her voice, but her lungs felt scorched. "Jaune, where are you? Jaune?"

It was no use. Her voice was too weak for anyone to hear her. She tried looking around for him, but all she could see, hear and taste was fire.

She scrambled away from one of the flames that got too close. It was like the flames were actively reaching out to her, trying to burn her alive in their fiery palms. A couple flames licked her exposed skin, burning the sensitive flesh that her aura was trying so desperately to protect.

"Anybody!?" she tried calling out again, praying that somebody would hear. "Is anyone out there? Jaune? Tell me where you are, Jaune! Please!"

Her words died in the flames. No one was coming to help her. She was completely alone in this burning pit.

The flames seemed to be getting closer and closer. She tried crawling away from them, but the further she scrambled, another wall of flames blocked her path. She felt like a rat trapped in a burning cage. There was nowhere for her to run or hide. Flames blocked her every path.

The sky was now lost to her. The flames had grown so large that they concealed the sky within its sickly orange glow.

Fire.

Fire burning all around her.

Everywhere she looked there was fire.

This was hell!

She wanted to scream but the smoke was choking her. She couldn't breathe!

She was going to die. She was going to die alone and in pain.

Her eyes darted all around looking for an escape, but her frightened gaze landed on something else. Lying on the ground a few feet away from her were her weapons. Still looking functional, they rested in a gap between a few flames, seemingly undamaged by the destruction around her. A small shred of hope swelled inside her.

She felt powerless in a dangerous situation without them. As long as she still had her weapons, she felt she could combat any situation. And if she was going to die here, she'd prefer to die the way all hunters died - armed.

She dragged her body across the floor towards her weapons. It would be so easy to just use her semblance to grab them, but her aura was weak enough as it was. Any more strain on it would cause it to deplete completely, and she needed something to protect her from the flames.

She was getting closer. She ignored the flames that tried to lap at her fingers. Her hand was burning, but she was so close now. They were almost within touching distance. Just a little bit further and-

"No, you don't!"

She saw a foot kick her weapons away to the side before she could grab them. That same foot then stomped down hard on her hand, the heel from the shoe almost crushing the bones. Pyrrha cried out in agony and tried wiggling her way free, but it was no use. What remained of her aura was desperately trying to minimise the damage.

She looked up and saw the red demon at last - Cinder. Untouched by the flames, she was glaring down at her with pure hatred. Her eyes burned with the fires of malice and her face was twisted into a furious snarl. Against the flames, combined with her red dress and murderous gaze, she truly looked like the monster she was.

She twisted the heel deeper into her hand, earning another cry of pain from her. "You aren't going to do anything else, Pyrrha Nikos," she seethed. "You're not going to fight. You're not even going to scream. You're just going to lay down and die like the rest of them."

She removed her foot from her hand and kicked her in the face. A white flash filled Pyrrha's vision as her head twisted violently from the impact, landing face down on the ground. She barely had time to recover when Cinder yanked her head up by her ponytail. She was so broken she couldn't even fight back.

The great wall of flames greeted her again. She looked into them with despair. She could feel the cool trail of tears run down her cheeks as the world around her burned.

"Why?" she muttered weakly. She had so little energy left, all she could do was manage out a few last words. "Why are you doing this? Why?"

Her head was yanked up a little tighter. Cinder knelt down and leaned in close to her ear. "Because I hate you," she whispered harshly. Her voice carried so much wrath in such a hushed tone. "You nearly took everything away from me. Everything I worked my whole life to achieve. Of all the obstacles in my way, none could have caused me more trouble than you. That's all you are. An obstacle. But not anymore."

Pyrrha wept silently. It didn't make any sense. Nothing about today made sense. Not the Maiden's, not what she was saying, nothing. She was going to die alone and confused.

"So now it's my turn," Cinder snarled. "I shall be the one who takes from you this time. I'll take _everything_ from you." The black blade she had been fighting with earlier suddenly formed in her hand. She held it before Pyrrha's widening eyes before pressing it to her neck. "This is what you deserve," she whispered. The last voice she would ever hear.

The cold steel pressed tightly against her neck. Pyrrha tried closing her eyes, but they remained wide open with fear. Her heart felt like it was about to burst. Would it hurt? Would she die quickly? Her breathing turned into short, frantic breaths. She didn't want pain. Please let there be no pain.

The blade pressed tighter against her. She could see a small trickle of blood form along its metal.

"Get away from her!"

A familiar voice rang in the air. She turned her head as much as she could and saw the last person she expected to see again.

Jaune!

He limped his way towards the pair. He was in terrible shape. He looked ready to collapse from the damage his body had taken. His armour was practically destroyed and his face was covered in bruises and cuts. His skin looked badly burned too. His aura must have been depleted in the explosion, as there were no signs of it healing him.

Nevertheless, he had a fierce look of determination on his face as he dragged his feet forward. His hand still held his sword at the ready, albeit shakingly. Whatever his body was suffering, he was still willing to fight.

Hope surged through Pyrrha from the sight of him. Seeing him still alive despite the odds brought her such joy…

… and such horror.

She looked up and saw her would-be killer staring at her partner. The look of hatred she had worn previously was gone from her face. Her expression was blank, but Pyrrha noticed the look in her eyes. They flickered in excitement as he made his way towards them. She looked like a snake gazing at an unexpected prey.

A cruel smirk formed on her face as she planned her next move.

No!

Please God no!

Cinder crouched down to her level again. "I'll start with him," she whispered. She pushed her away and started walking slowly towards him.

No! Pyrrha scrambled forward and tried to stop her, but a wall of fire suddenly appeared from nowhere and blocked her path. She could nothing but watch as Jaune was trapped in a burning arena with Cinder.

 _Leave him alone_! she wanted to scream. This wasn't his fight. Take her instead, just please let him live. Please.

"I'm surprised you're still alive, " Cinder laughed. "I thought for certain that blast killed you. You're persistent, I'll give you that. Like a real hunter. Or a cockroach."

"Told you I'm stronger than I look," he growled. Every step he made looked like it was agony for him. "You're gonna… you're gonna leave Pyrrha alone!"

Cinder's smirk grew. "Don't worry, boy. I'm all yours," she purred. She pointed her sword at him. "Come and get me."

 _Please run_. Pyrrha begged for him to just leave and save himself. He didn't stand a chance against Cinder. Neither of them did now.

Jaune took the bait. He staggered forward and tried delivering a powerful downward swing. Cinder blocked it with ease with just one hand. Her arm didn't even tremble. She punched him in his broken chestplate, causing him to stumble backwards and fall.

He landed on his back and gasped in pain. Cinder tapped her foot playfully on the ground, waiting for him to get back up again. Staggering back on his feet, he charged in again and blindly slashed at her. Each swing of his sword was slow and sloppy. Cinder barely even had to dodge.

Pyrrha watched in despair as Cinder toyed with her partner. Sometimes she stepped out of the way of his strike. Other times she blocked and countered them by jabbing him with her sword or burning him. This wasn't a fight. This was just cruelty.

Pyrrha couldn't do anything but watch due to the flames blocking her path. Not that she'd be of any help anyway. She could hardly feel her legs. She desperately searched for anything that could help. Jaune was going to die unless she helped him.

And then she found her solution. Lying in the distance was her weapons that Cinder had kicked away. She had nearly forgotten about them. Thank God they hadn't fallen off the side of the tower.

She crawled closer to them and tried reaching out to them, but the flames threatened to burn her fingers off. No matter how much she tried, she couldn't reach them.

She had no choice. She was going to have to use her semblance to grab them. It would result in the end of her aura, but right now she needed her weapons. In the distance, she heard the clash of metal and Cinder laughing. At least the fight was still going on.

She flexed her fingers and her weapons glowed black. They then began slowly moving towards her. Sweat poured down her face as she used what was left of her strength into getting her weapons back. Her muscles ached, her fingers trembled, but she remained focused. She had to push on.

After what felt like an eternity, the weapons eventually moved close enough to touch. A crackling red effect covered her body and the whole world suddenly seemed even hotter than before. That was it. That was the last of her aura. She had nothing to protect her anymore.

But she needed no protection. She looked back at the fight going on. Cinder's focus was completely on Jaune as she taunted him after every failed strike. Pyrrha could provide covering fire from where she was. It wouldn't stop her, but it'd at least distract her and buy him enough time to run.

She grabbed her spear and transformed it into its rifle form. She gritted her teeth and forced herself not to scream in pain as she held it.

 _Oh God, it burned!_

Her weapon had survived the blast, but the fire had made it scorching hot. With no aura to protect her, the metal burned her palms. It felt like she was gripping molten hot magma in her hands.

She hissed in pain as she aimed down the sights. She had to ignore the pain. Jaune was counting on her to make the shot. She tried holding the rifle steady in her trembling hands. It felt like they were melting off her arms.

Cinder filled her vision. She had her backed turned to Pyrrha, completely unaware of what she was doing. She had a clear shot. She just had to pull the trigger.

The smell of burning flesh hit her nostrils.

 _Pull the trigger!_

Her hands started to spasm from the intensity of the heat.

 _Pull the trigger!_

Her arms wobbled. Her eyes clenched shut. She could feel the grip on her weapon loosen. Her aim was slipping.

It hurt so much…

She let loose a howl of pain as she dropped her rifle, lying on the floor and nursing her scorched hands. The flesh was as red as her hair and was painful to even look at. She held them close to her chest, trying to shield them from further harm.

She had failed him.

To her misery, she saw that her scream had attracted Cinder's attention. The woman's eyes narrowed at the sight of her weapons lying close to her. They flared in anger and when she faced Jaune again she no longer fought with that playful demeanour. Now she was completely serious.

She kicked him away and hurled a large fireball at him. He quickly blocked it with his shield and the light from the explosion temporarily blinded both him and Pyrrha. When the light faded he was still standing, but the explosion had obliterated his shield. Broken pieces of white metal littered the ground, leaving the Arc family heirloom completely destroyed. Even its once golden emblem was now unrecognisable.

Jaune stared at the ground stunned, mourning the loss of his shield. It almost looked like he was about to cry. When he looked up at Cinder again, it was with pure hate and rage. He put all of his efforts into one last swing of his sword, hoping to rain his blade down on her head.

"No…" Pyrrha whimpered. Her voice carried as much strength as his swing.

Cinder stood her ground and grabbed his wrist before the sword could touch her, bringing his attack to a stop. He struggled against her grip, but she pulled him forward with ease into her space. She applied heat to the hand holding his wrist, forcing him to drop his sword. The blade fell and clattered to the ground.

Their foreheads touched from how close they were. There was nowhere for him to run. She smiled sinisterly at him.

She saw the whole thing in slow motion…

Cinder raised her sword and ran the black blade into Jaune's chest, the weapon easily piercing through what was left of his armour. Jaune gasped and tried pulling away, but Cinder's free hand let go of his wrist and snaked around his waist, pulling him closer to her. His eyes widened as the blade was forced deeper into him. His body twitched and trembled in her grasp.

A noise that sounded like a strangled whine left Pyrrha's lips.

Cinder held him in place for a few seconds, before retracting her blade and pushing him back with a gentle push to his chest. She made the blade in her hand disappear. She no longer had any use for it. The damage was already done.

Jaune stumbled backwards, his whole body trembling. For a moment he said nothing, staring at the hole in his chest in shock. It was as if he couldn't comprehend what had happened. A shaky hand of his went to touch the wound, almost like he was seeing if it was even real. He pulled his hand away and stared in horror at his bloodstained fingers.

Pyrrha's eyes couldn't look away from the wound. Blood was already beginning to pour out of it. His very life was leaving him and dripping on to the floor. Without aura, there was no way of healing it.

He was… he was going to...

She could see the moment when the pain finally registered with him. He cried out in fear and agony and dropped to his knees. His hand clenched his wound tightly, almost as if he was trying to squeeze it closed. His blood seeped through the gaps in his fingers.

"Pyrrha…" he sobbed, tears of sorrow and pain dripping down his face. His free hand reached out towards her. "Pyrrha… I'm so… I'm sorry-"

He got cut off when he was forced to cough up a bile of blood. He made no other noise apart from the sound of him whimpering and hissing in misery.

Pyrrha no longer felt the flames. She couldn't feel the burning pain in her hands, nor the ache of her weary bones. All she could feel was the agony of her heart shattering into a million pieces. Every whimper he made caused it to break away one piece at a time.

He looked so sad...

Her hand weakly reached out towards him, her scorched flesh passing through the flames. He looked so lonely bleeding out over there. He shouldn't have to be alone. She tried summoning her semblance again to pull him towards her, but nothing happened. She had already used up all her aura.

It wasn't fair. She just wanted to help him. Why wasn't she allowed to help him?

Cinder walked slowly towards him. She had been standing back the entire time, watching him as he writhed in pain. Now she was ready to make another move. She knelt down next to him and cupped his face in her hands. He didn't have the strength to fight her off anymore. Her smile remained as she watched him cry into her hands.

"Shh," she said in a soft, almost motherly tone. She wiped away some of the blood from his lips with her thumb, while the other hand gently stroked his hair. "I know. I know it hurts. But I promise I'll make the pain go away. Now hold still."

She tilted his head ever so slightly upward. His eyes remained open, staring up at her with desperate hope, silently pleading for her to be merciful. She held his gaze for a short moment before she leaned down, closed her eyes, and gave him a gentle kiss on the forehead.

A bright flash of light enveloped his body the moment her lips touched him. When the light faded, his entire body glowed amber. His expression was frozen on his face. The blood leaking out of the wound instantly stopped flowing. He didn't move a muscle. It was like he was some kind of bronze statue.

Cinder then leaned back and gently blew into his face. His entire body crumbled under her breath, breaking apart and turning into dust. Piece by piece, he was quickly disappearing into nothing. The last of him faded away until there was nothing left of the boy that had once been sitting there.

Pyrrha's eyes followed the specks of dust that had once been her partner. Some became scattered to the wind. Others became lost in the flames. Everything about him was disappearing right in front of her eyes. One speck flew past her, hovering close to her face. It glowed with a faint amber light as if there was still life left in it. She tried touching it, but it slipped past her fingers. The light fizzled out and faded to nothing like the rest of him.

And then he was gone.

He wasn't even dust in the wind anymore. Any and all trace of him was lost. All that remained of him was a broken shield and a dirty sword.

The world was on fire, yet Pyrrha had never felt colder in her entire life. All of her senses went numb. Her mind seemed to shut down. All she could do was stare usually at the spot where he had once been. Her eyes scanned for anything that might have remained of him. He was still there. He had to be. She just wasn't looking hard enough.

Cinder stood over her. Was she talking to her? It sounded like it, but everything was muffled. She didn't have time to listen to her ramble, she had to look for Jaune. He was there somewhere and needed help. They promised to protect each other.

Another noise could be heard in the distance. Someone screaming. It sounded like Ruby. Maybe she'd be able to help? She was friends with him, maybe she could help find him? Was that his name she was screaming?

All of a sudden, a bright light exploded all around her. It came from every direction, the purest form of light she had ever seen. Everything it passed over was washed away. The flames, the wreckage, even the world, everything was dissolving within the walls of this brilliant white light.

She felt the light wash over her. It was warm, not like the harsh heat of the flames that had threatened to burn her alive. This warmth made her feel safe and relaxed. She could feel the aches in her bones fading away. It was like slipping into a hot bath. Her whole body felt like jelly.

She struggled to keep her eyelids open. She couldn't fall asleep now. Not when Jaune was still missing. He was relying on her to find her. If she was to fall asleep…

God, she was so tired…

She didn't even feel her head hit the ground. The outside world became blurry to her. She too was becoming one with this warm, beautiful light. Her eyelids drifted shut and she no longer had the strength to open them again. It had been such a long, hard day. Probably the hardest day in her entire life. She needed her rest.

She'd have to find Jaune in the morning.

* * *

 **First chapter done. As I said, things are kinda the same with quite a few tweaks. How Jaune died is very different than how he died originally. His death was inspired by a certain scene I saw in one of the Berserk films where another blond kid gets stabbed, albeit accidentally. It was a very dramatic scene, and I hope I captured the same emotional weight that that scene had when writing this.**

 **Anyway, what can you expect from this rewrite? Well, hopefully, better structure than the previous one, neater sentences and grammar, as well as a few other changes. I won't give them all away, but they'll be new to this story, as well as play a bigger part in Pyrrha's grief, rather than it just be all about Jaune dying. I've been thinking hard about all of this, so as long as I don't rush in, things should all go according to plan.**

 **Until next time.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Here we are with chapter two. Apologies for any slow updates. I'm just slogging through the final few months of university now. Who knows, maybe I'll even graduate? Anyways, enjoy.**

* * *

 **Cover art - powerfulpomegranate**

* * *

 _The world was on fire._

 _The pain was unbearable._

 _Flames. Smoke. Everything burned._

 _She couldn't breathe._

 _Flames._

 _Fire._

 _Burning._

 _Pain._

 _JAUNE!_

Pyrrha awoke with a gasp. Her eyes shot open, only for her to quickly squeeze them shut again in discomfort. Everything was so bright, almost blindingly so. It hurt her to keep her eyes open. Where was she? She remembered a brilliant white light before everything went black. Could it be that she was still in that light? Or maybe the fires had finally claimed her. Was this even real? Was this death?

The aches in her body as she tried leaning up assured her this was real. But what was happening? She couldn't see because of the blinding light. She couldn't even tell where she was. All she knew was that she was warm, lying down, and… comfy?

She opened her eyes slowly as she tried focusing on her surroundings. Everything was still so bright, but the light was slowly fading and things were beginning to take shape, albeit blurry. She blinked away the last of her dreariness and the world finally came into focus.

She was in a large, white room surrounded by medical equipment. She was lying on a reclining bed and was no longer wearing her combat gear. Looking down, she could see she was dressed in some kind of blue patient's gown. An empty chair sat close to her bed.

She was in a hospital? What was she doing in a hospital?

She went up to rub her eyes, only to stop when she saw her hands. They were covered in thick, white bandages that left nothing exposed. There were so many bandages that her hands almost felt heavy under their weight. How had she gotten these? Who put them on her? She tried clenching her hands and hissed in pain from the effort. Whatever state her hands were in, those bandages were apparently there for a reason.

None of this made any sense? How had she gotten here? Moments ago, she was fighting Cinder with Jaune, and now she was-

Realisation struck her like a lightning bolt. Cinder was still at Beacon. Jaune was fighting her own his own. She didn't know how she had been moved, but she needed to get back there at once. He didn't stand a chance against her by himself.

She threw the blankets off her and stumbled out of the bed. Her skin felt like it was going to tear with every stretch she made. Her body felt hot against the cool air of the hospital. Looking down, she could see that her legs and arms were an angry shade of red. The slightest bit of movement stung her.

She growled. She didn't have time to worry about her discomfort. Jaune was still out there. He needed her.

She burst out the doors to her room and into the corridor outside. She stumbled her way past the doctors who looked bewildered at the sight of her. Some stared at her with wide eyes, others mumbled something and called out for help. She pushed her way past the sea of doctors and patients as she tried looking for the front entrance.

"Ms Nikos, wait!" a nurse shouted behind her. Pyrrha ignored her and pushed on. Several other doctors called her name and a few brave ones tried getting in her way. Despite her injuries, she was able to push past them.

What was their problem? Beacon was under attack, Jaune was in danger, and all these people cared about was stopping her? Why weren't they helping her?

She found the stairway and dragged her body down them to reach the ground floor. Her body felt wrecked and exhausted, causing her to stumble with every step. At one point, she even tripped on the way down and landed hard on the ground. Her head swam and it felt like her body was going to explode from the pain.

" _We're partners, Pyrrha. Whatever the situation, I will always be here for you."_

She forced herself back onto her feet. His words were ringing in her ears. He had promised to stand by her side, and she would do the same for him. They were partners. Partners protected each other. She had to be there for him.

"I'm coming, Jaune," she mumbled to herself. "I'm coming."

After finally making her way down the stairs, she entered the main lobby. The morning sunlight poured through the windows, stinging her body as the beams made contact with her sensitive skin. Her heart raced. Morning? But it had been night when they fought Cinder. How long had she been here?

She could see the front entrance ahead. She limped her way over to it. "I'm coming," she kept mumbling. She didn't know how she was going to get back to Beacon, but she'd find a way. Even if it meant sneaking onto a bullhead, she'd return to him.

Partners protected each other.

The sunlight obscured her vision. Everything was becoming a blurry mess again. The entrance was so close, yet seemed so far away. So blind to her surroundings, she didn't see the large man she crashed into. He had appeared seemingly out of nowhere but was now standing in her way and blocking the entrance. He pulled her into a crushing hug, which only made her body hurt even more.

"Let go of me!" Pyrrha cried. Who was this man and why was he stopping her? She felt so weak that she no longer had the strength to push him away. All she could do was flail in his embrace.

"Pyrrha, stop," the man said. His voice was strangely familiar. "That's enough. You have to stop."

"I said, let go!" She beat her fist against his shoulder. Without any power, the fist bounced harmlessly off him. But that didn't stop her from trying anyway.

The man didn't flinch against the beating. "It's over," he said. "It's over now. You're safe."

Safe? She didn't care about being safe. Jaune was out there risking his life. She had to help him and this idiot was getting in her way. Why was everyone trying to stop her? She just wanted to help her partner. Was that too much to ask for?

"I have to save him!" she roared against the man's shoulder. "Jaune's still out there! I have to-"

"Pyrrha, it's over," the man whispered. One of his hands came up to stroke her hair gently. Fatherly. "It's over… I'm so sorry, darling."

Pyrrha froze. Her arm stopped punching him and hung limply by her side. She looked up at the face of her captor. The sun lay hidden behind his head, giving her a clear view of his face. She recognised it instantly.

"Dad?" she whispered.

Her father rested his head on top of hers, still stroking her hair as he tried to comfort her. "I'm so sorry," he whispered again.

Pyrrha looked over his shoulder at the other doctors and patients staring at her. Some looked away awkwardly and tried excusing themselves. The majority, however, looked at her with sad and sympathetic expressions. The whole foyer was silent. No one dared to speak a word.

Pyrrha, for the most part, was like a statue. The only thing holding her upright was the arms of her father. Her whole body ached, but it was her chest that hurt the most. It was an aching, throbbing pain that somehow managed to make the whole world slow down. Realisation was digging into her like needles.

Her vision blurred again, though not from dizziness. The cold moisture running down her face told her that much. Her father was right. It was over. Everything was over. And she had failed to stop it from ending.

Jaune…

She leaned into him and buried her wails into his shoulder until her voice went hoarse.

[/]

Jaune Arc was dead.

It was such a funny thing to say and think about. The more she repeated that fact, the less real it seemed. It was mostly due to how he didn't _feel_ dead. At least, not to her. As she stared up at the cracks in the ceiling, she kept expecting him to come in through the door, joking about how he screwed up on a test, or how he failed to get Weiss to pay attention to him. Well, in the way he would've liked her to. Someone with his personality didn't just disappear like that. The idea of him dying… it didn't seem possible.

But dead he was. She had only been awake for a few hours, but it felt like she had spent an eternity repeating the same phrase over and over again, trying to grind reality into her thick skull. He wasn't coming through the door to see her. He was never going to spend time with ever again.

Because Jaune Arc was dead. She repeated it once more in her head for good measure.

Jaune Arc was dead.

Ah, but he wasn't exactly dead, was he? Death at least implied a body or something the person left behind. Something to remember them by. But Jaune? Cinder had disintegrated his entire body, leaving him as nothing more than dust in the wind. What was left of him probably burned in the fires at the tower.

Jaune Arc was more than dead. He was _obliterated_. Any and all traces of his existence was destroyed by Cinder. All she had left to remember him by was the memories she had of him. Reminders of how everything about him was over now. But despite all the memories she had of him, only one seemed to stand out in particular. The one she hated the most. The last sight she ever saw of him, bleeding, weeping and finally dying, before being reduced to nothing.

It burned in the back of her mind. Engraved in her like a brand of shame. She closed her eyes and could see the memory play out before her as clear as day. It would never leave her alone. It would likely stay with her until the end of time. She had to live with that now.

And now here she was - the brave soldier who had returned home from the battlefield, lying broken and useless in a hospital bed. She had only woken up recently, but apparently, she had been there for a few days. She had barely moved after being returned to her room. Her whole body felt like dead weight. Between the uncomfortable stinging sensation from her skin, to the lack of energy she had to even lift a finger, she felt quite content to just lay there for eternity if she had to. This whole thing felt like a bad dream, and she would gladly wait in bed until she woke up.

She tilted her head to see Baldrick Nikos, her father, sitting by her bed patiently and reading a book. It had felt so long since she had last seen him. He looked different from how she remembered him before. His hair had been thinning the last time she saw him, but now he was completely bald. She was sure her mother had already made jokes about his shiny head by now, as well as the ones telling him to shave that goatee he still wore. At least he hadn't been slacking when it came to exercise, as he was still as muscular as she remembered.

"How am I doing?" she said quietly. It had been the first thing she had said in a while.

Baldrick looked up from his book. "Pyrrha?"

"That's what you want to ask me, right?" she said. "That's what everyone asks people who are in hospital, even if they already know."

Baldrick chuckled and scratched his goatee nervously. "I suppose the thought did occur to me at one point." He paused for a moment and sighed. "Look, Pyrrha, I'm not stupid. I can't even begin to understand what you must be going through right now. You've been through hell, darling." He leaned over and gently touched her arm. "But you came back. You're going to be okay, I promise."

Her lip wobbled. She could feel tears stinging her eyes again. "I don't feel okay," she croaked. "I'm hurt, Dad. It hurts so much."

He grimaced. "When they found you, you had taken some serious damage," he said. "Your aura's working off the clock to patch you up though, so your body should recover in no time."

She shook her head sadly. "That's not what hurts," she mumbled. How she wished it was just physical pain. That would've been easy. She was a huntress and a tournament fighter, she could handle it.

But the pain Jaune's death had caused her was like nothing she had ever felt before. It was like there was a hole inside her now that was constantly expanding, swallowing up all of her energy and leaving her hollow and weak. It truly felt like there was something missing inside of her, something she knew she'd never get back. That only made it hurt even worse.

Her father sighed. "I know," he said softly. He carefully placed a hand on one of her bandaged ones to avoid hurting her. "Pyrrha, I need you to listen to me. You aren't going to like what I'm about to say, but you need to hear it. Are you listening?"

Pyrrha slowly turned her head towards him. She knew exactly what was coming next, and no, she didn't want to hear it. Especially because it wasn't true at all.

"It wasn't your fault."

And there it was. She looked away from him and shut her eyes. That didn't stop the tears from leaking out. She had been waiting for someone to say that to her. In hindsight, she didn't blame him for saying that. What were you supposed to say to someone in her position? She understood what he was trying to do, but it was a wasted effort on his part.

"You don't know that," she whispered.

"I do know that," he said firmly. His hand wobbled slightly, like he was trying to grip her hand harder without hurting her.

"You weren't there."

He hesitated. "No, I wasn't," he admitted. "But I know you, Pyrrha. I know you did your damndest to protect that boy from danger. What happened was something nobody could've stopped."

"But I could have stopped it!" she snapped. "You weren't there, Dad. I tried getting him to leave right from the start. I didn't want him to come with me. I knew it was dangerous, but he…" She tried gripping the sheets, but the pain in her hands was just too great. "But he insisted," she croaked. "And I let him convince me."

Baldrick stared at her thoughtfully. "You said he was your partner, yes?" he said. She didn't answer. "Isn't it a partner's duty to help the other one out? Sounds to me he was doing his job."

"He shouldn't have," she growled. "He wasn't ready for that kind of fight. I wasn't even ready for it. We were both out of our element and now he's…" She choked on the final word. It was too painful to say. She could feel that familiar, aching throb in her chest again from thinking about it.

"He made his choice," Baldrick said softly. "He wanted to come with you, Pyrrha. He wanted to keep you safe, and he succeeded. His death is not on you. It wasn't your fault."

She growled. She decided she hated that phrase now. It was like trying to wave a magic wand to make all the bad things disappear. As if by saying that, she was somehow forgiven for all her mistakes. It was a cheap and lazy tactic to make herself feel better. If it wasn't her fault, then who's fault was it?

Well, the answer seemed obvious enough. But at the same time, she had her doubts. Cinder didn't convince Jaune to fight her. She hadn't made him stand by his partner's side simply because she didn't want to be alone. Pyrrha had done that all herself. In the end, she had been the one to convince Jaune to go to his death. Who was worse - the executioner, or the one who passed the sentence?

"It didn't have to be this way," she muttered. "It was my job to protect him too. I should've done something more."

Baldrick closed his eyes and sighed. "You're grieving, Pyrrha. Your mind's not in the right place, I get it. But you're a smart girl. You did everything you could, darling. You'll understand that in time."

Would she? Because right now, she felt like the truth was staring at her right in the face. Jaune's death was entirely on her. Asking him to fight with her against Cinder was like sending a lamb to the slaughterhouse. It was her fault, and she doubted she would see things differently.

Her father was never going to believe that though. She could argue with him until she was blue in the face, and he'd still try to convince her otherwise. It would be a waste of time. Plus, she neither had the strength nor the patience to argue right now. It was time to talk about something else.

She looked down at her arms. "How bad do I look?" she said with a weak smile on her face.

Baldrick chuckled. He was probably relieved to be talking about something else. "Your skin's looking a little red," he said. "You were in a firefight, after all. But aura's patched up the worst of it. Honestly, it looks like you've just spent a little too long in the sun."

Well, at least there was that. She looked down at her bandaged hands. "And what about these?" she said.

He paused for a moment. His merry mood leaving him. "Not great," he said slowly. "Your hands were scorched when they found you. Your right one looked like it was ready to fall off. I have no idea how you managed that. Were you trying to hold fire or something?"

Pyrrha shuddered at the memory of her gun burning her hands. She could still smell the burning flesh if she concentrated.

"The good news is that they will recover," he continued. "They'll take a little longer to than the rest of you, but with the right treatment and aura backing you up, you'll be fine. But I'm afraid there will be scars. Your hands were bad, Pyrrha, and I mean _bad_. Aura can get them working again, but it can't fix everything."

It also didn't help that she had gotten the injuries after her aura had broke. Hunters relied heavily on their aura to heal their wounds. Because of that, the body's natural recovery system was made slower as a result, since they didn't depend on it as much. Small wounds healed quickly enough, but ones like hers? She'd be lucky if she would recognise her hands after the bandages were taken off.

"But I'll still be able to use them, right?" she asked him.

"Yes," he said firmly. "They might not look the same as before, but you're not going to lose them. We'll make sure of it."

A small bit of relief washed over her. It took only a second for her to return to original mood. "Okay," she muttered softly.

Baldrick shifted in his chair. He was running out of things to say to cheer her up. She should've felt bad, but she wasn't in the mood for small talk. She wasn't in the mood for anything. Just holding this conversation was draining her of most of her energy.

He leaned in closer again. Her body tensed. She could feel it coming again. Those words that drove the dagger further into her heart.

"Pyrrha-"

"Don't say it," she croaked. She couldn't hear those words right now. "Please don't say it. Please."

"Alright, I won't," he said reassuringly. "But we all know it wasn't. I know, your mother knows it, and your friends know it. I'm sure those two teammates of yours will tell you the same thing-"

"Ren and Nora are here?" she nearly shouted. Her heart raced. This had been the first she had heard of her remaining teammates. After that night, she had assumed the worst for everyone.

"Yeah, I think that's who they said they were."

"I want to see them," she said quickly. "Send them in, I want to see them."

Baldrick blinked. "Now?"

She felt a vein throb in her head. "Yes, now!" she cried. Why would he even ask her such a thing? She was normally a patient person, but now was not the time to toy with her.

"Pyrrha… it's midnight."

It was what? Pyrrha looked out the window in confusion. Good God. How long had she been staring at the ceiling for to not notice the moonlight pouring in through the window, or the darkness that enveloped the now night sky? It had felt like afternoon only seconds ago. Time was beginning to slip away from her. Was she really that wrapped up in her own mind?

She looked away from the window and hung her head in defeat. "Oh," she muttered. Ren and Nora would certainly be asleep by now. She'd have to talk to them in the morning. This time, the hours felt like they would drag as she waited for the sun to rise again.

"I'll tell them to visit you tomorrow," Baldrick said. "In the meantime, you should get some rest. A good night's sleep will do you some good." He tried hiding it, but a yawn left his mouth as he spoke. Pyrrha had to smile at his attempt to conceal his tiredness. His efforts were cute.

"Sounds to me I'm not the only one who needs sleep," she giggled weakly.

"Don't you worry about me," he chuckled. "Just worry about getting some rest. After what you've been through, you've earned a break."

Pyrrha's breath caught in her throat. Did she earn it? She had only ever been rewarding something by achieving victory, like winning a tournament match or something like that. To the victor went the spoils. That was the rule.

But this?

Her father was only a few feet away from the door. "Dad," she called back to him. "Can you… stay a little longer?" She hated the way her voice broke when she said it.

Baldrick was back by her side in no time. If she was on her own, she may have been able to control herself. Sometimes, being alone had its advantages. But she didn't want to be alone. The thought of being so again was unbearable. You could break her, torment her, just… don't leave her alone.

She felt her throat tighten again. She couldn't stop the tears streaming down her face. "I wanted to keep him safe," she sobbed. "We promised each other we would. But it was just too much, and I was so scared. Why couldn't I… I should have…"

She couldn't control herself any longer. She practically threw herself at her father, burying her weeping face into his shoulder. His arms held her in place, while his free hand stroked the back of her head just as he had done in the foyer. He was careful not to squeeze too tightly to avoid hurting her. Curse her skin. She didn't care about the pain, she just wanted to be held again.

"It wasn't your fault," he whispered one more time in her ear. The words only made her cry harder.

This wasn't a victory. She hadn't won anything that night. She didn't deserve the chance to rest. The only reason she had survived was because she had escaped that fight. Not won it, escaped it. Some might of argued that living was proof of her victory, but at what cost? Jaune was dead. He had died on her account.

What good was living if he wasn't by her side?

[/]

She had demanded to see Ren and Nora the moment she woke up.

She hadn't slept well. At all. She was physically and mentally exhausted, but she just couldn't find it within herself to find rest. Her mind was always on edge. Every small noise sounded like a threat to her. The slightest bit of noise had her heart racing and cold sweat running down her body. Her instincts as a huntress had been dialled up to eleven ever since that night.

And the off moments when she did allow her eyes to close, she was greeted with the same image that plagued her mind like a disease. Flames. Cinder. Burning. Jaune. She remembered it all in perfect detail, and it only got worse the more she dwelled on it.

She wanted - no, _needed_ \- to see her team again. After everything that had happened, she needed some familiarity in her life. Something that reminded her of the life she had before. Ren and Nora were probably the only ones who'd be able to ease her mind.

When the door opened and they entered, a mixture of emotions coursed through her. Happy when she saw them again, relief when she saw they weren't that injured, but then misery when she saw their faces. How easy it was to forget that she wasn't the only one that had suffered. Jaune was their friend and leader just as much as he was hers. Their grief was obvious at first glance.

Ren looked almost like how he normally did. His expression was stoic and his face gave little away in terms of emotion. But anyone who knew him would've been able to spot the differences in his demeanour. His eyes looked tired and were devoid of the subtle spark they normally carried. His face seemed to sag a little, and his body was slouched. He was always a tired person, but he never looked like he was on the verge of collapsing. He was beyond exhausted, and she knew it wasn't due to a lack of sleep.

But Nora, bless the poor girl, was even worse. Even if people didn't know her that well, anyone could tell there was something seriously wrong with her. She had tried putting on a brave face as she entered, but she wore her emotions on her sleeve. The second she caught Pyrrha's eye, that mask had shattered like glass. Her eyes were red and baggy, her mouth wobbled as it tried to stop the inevitable frown from forming, and the bounce she normally had in her movement was gone. To see such a colourful, energetic girl be reduced to this broke Pyrrha's heart.

For a while, the three of them just stared at each other in silence. Pyrrha had honestly thought she would never see the two of them again. Seeing them alive filled her with relief, but also misery. Her family was still alive, but they were one short a member. That empty space next to the pair reminded her as such.

"Hey guys," she whispered with a small smile on her face.

Nora was the first to break. She crashed into Pyrrha and pulled her into a crushing but somehow gentle hug. For a moment, she stopped squeezing as hard to avoid hurting her skin, but Pyrrha wrapped her arms around her and hugged her back tightly, telling her it was okay. This was her team, and she'd be damned if she was going to let some simple skin irritation get in the way of their reunion. Ren sat down next to her bed and put a gentle hand on one of her bandaged ones.

"You're alive," Nora sobbed into her shoulder. She kept repeating the phrase over and over. At first, it was out loud, but then it sounded like she was just repeating it to herself. "I was so scared. When they found you, I didn't know if you were gonna…" She broke off into another fit of sobs.

Nora Valkyrie was crying. Truly a statement to how bad things now were.

Pyrrha kissed her forehead and stroked her hair. "It's good to see you again, Nora," she whispered. She looked at Ren who was sitting by her side. "You too, Ren." She flipped her hand over to let his fingers entwine with hers. She would've held it tighter if her fingers had let her.

A small, almost invisible smile formed on Ren's face. "Likewise, Pyrrha," he said. "You're looking well."

"I've been better," she muttered. It must have been bad manners to lie to someone in a hospital bed. She didn't blame him for trying though.

"It's our fault," Nora continued to wail. "It's our fault you're hurt like this, Pyrrha. We should've been there with you. We should have…" She leaned back, looked at her shoulder and giggled humorlessly. "Sorry, I'm kinda turning your shirt into a snot rag here."

Pyrrha smiled softly at her and pulled her back into another hug. "Don't worry about the shirt. I'm just happy to see you safe. I was so worried about you two."

"We got lucky," Ren said. "We were close to the evacuation point and escaped the worst of the fighting. Nora got out fine, and I only suffered minor injuries in the end."

"And Team RWBY?"

"They made it out safe too. Although Yang… well, don't worry about Yang right now. Just know that they're all alright."

"Good," she sighed. She had prayed for the safety of their sister team too. "As long as we're all alive."

Silence flooded the room as soon as the words left her lips.

She felt Nora stiffen in her arms. "Jaune isn't," she heard her whisper in a hushed voice. If she hadn't been close to her ear, Pyrrha doubted she would've been able to hear her. Her chest tightened at the sound of his name. She turned to Ren and saw him staring down at the floor in shame, his face hidden beneath his black bangs.

The tension in the air was suffocating. Of course they had found out by now. For a while, she had been worried that she would have to tell them herself. Somehow, finding out that they already knew was even worse.

"You know?" she whispered. Her voice carried as much strength as the rest of her body.

Ren nodded gravely. "A man named Qrow went back to the tower once the fighting was over, and the only ones up there were you and, for some reason, Ruby. As for Jaune, all he could find was his weapons and nothing else. Literally nothing else. It… didn't take us long to figure out what happened."

Nora pressed herself harder against her. She could hear her muffled sobs returning. It took all of her willpower not to join in with her.

"What about Cinder?"

"I don't know. He couldn't find her body. There's no telling if she's still alive or not."

Oh, she was. Pyrrha was certain of it. Cinder was a Maiden now and could survive anything thrown at her. She still didn't know what had stopped the madwoman from killing her too, but whatever it was only slowed her down at best. As far as justice went, she had gotten away with it…

It was hard to feel ashamed from how numb she was feeling, but she somehow found a way.

"She killed him," she whispered. She spared them the details of how she did it, but her words carried the same kind of impact as a punch to the stomach. "She killed him right in front of me."

Ren's fists clenched. "We couldn't do anything," he muttered bitterly. Hearing him sound angry was an unusual and chilling experience. "By the time we got his message, every airship and bullhead was in full retreat. They had declared Beacon a no-fly zone. We tried convincing them to turn around, but nothing worked. We were powerless."

"We weren't even that hurt," Nora growled. "I could've easily kept on fighting. We should have been there with you, but we left you behind. And now all this has happened."

"It was our fault," Ren said. "We failed you both as teammates that night. If you blame us in any way for what happened, Pyrrha…" He swallowed. "We understand completely."

Pyrrha nearly choked. What were they talking about? They thought _they_ were the ones responsible for what happened to her and Jaune? Oh Lord, they did. Ren was looking down at the floor again in shame. Nora gave one last sniffle before trying to remove herself off of her. Pyrrha's arms tightened around the girl before she could leave.

Blame them? These two were her family in everything but blood, and they were not the ones at fault here. She needed to convince them of that.

"I could never blame you for what happened," she whispered. "Please don't ever say that again." It hurt her that they assumed she might have. Did they not understand how important they were to her?

"You should," Nora grumbled. "Teams are supposed to stick together. We weren't there for you."

"It doesn't matter."

"It does matter!"

"Not to me, it doesn't."

"How can you say that?" Nora shouted. The look in her eyes told Pyrrha that her anger wasn't directed at her. "If we had been there with you, you wouldn't be stuck in this place and Jaune wouldn't be… we should've been there, Pyrrha!"

Pyrrha cupped her face in her hands and smiled gently at her. She wiped away some of the girl's tears that trickled down her cheeks. "I'm just happy to see you both alive, Nora," she said. "That's all that matters to me right now."

Nora's angry expression wobbled until she was looking as miserable as when she came in. "I want him back," she sobbed. "We're family. He's not allowed to die like that. It's not fair!"

Pyrrha had no comforting words for that. She couldn't even think of anything to say. How could she respond to that when she felt the exact same way? Even Ren looked uncomfortable with Nora's words. His face was hidden beneath his hair again, but Pyrrha noticed the way his chest and shoulders heaved ever so slightly. There were just some emotions that not even he could hide.

"I'm sorry," she whimpered. Her friends were hurting because of her failure. All she could do was apologize. "I am so, so sorry."

Nora looked up at her. "W-What?" she sniffed. "What are you sorry for?"

Pyrrha sucked in a deep breath. They deserved to know what happened, and she deserved whatever repercussion that followed. "What happened to him was my fault," she said. "He wasn't supposed to be with me. I was supposed to send him away, but I just couldn't. I wanted him with me. I was so-"

"Pyrrha, what are you talking about?" Ren said calmly.

 _Tell them what happened, Pyrrha. Tell them how you failed them._

"That night, Cinder had killed Ozpin and went up to the tower," she began. "Jaune was supposed to leave so that I could fight her myself."

"Wait, what?" Nora cried. "Why would you do that by yourself?"

Pyrrha bit her lip. She didn't know if she should mention how Cinder had stolen the Maiden's power, something that was supposed to be for her. The very concept of Maidens was something she still couldn't wrap her head around. It would only confuse the two of them if she tried explaining it and her sense of responsibility towards what happened, so it was probably best to give them an easier answer to digest.

"I thought I could win."

Nora blinked. "You thought what?"

"I was the strongest student in Beacon. I figured if anyone stood a chance against her, it was me."

"But… but she killed Ozpin."

"I didn't say I thought it through well," she groaned. "Only that I thought I stood a chance."

Nora looked at her baffled, while Ren stared at her with analytical eyes. It was pretty obvious that they didn't believe her, but that was okay. Why she had gone to fight Cinder wasn't important. Only what happened afterwards…

"I didn't want Jaune to get involved. I did everything I could to stop him from following me. But he persisted, told me I didn't want to be alone… and he was right." Now she was properly crying. "I promised him I'd protect him. I should've just sent him away at the start, but I didn't. I was selfish, and I got him killed because of it. I just… I… I didn't want to die."

It was on that night she had abandoned everything she had been taught. Hunters were supposed to be brave, selfless people who always stood in the face of danger to protect the innocent. That was the philosophy she modelled herself after, but discarded it the moment she was met with a real challenge. On that night, Jaune Arc became a better hunter than she could ever hope to be. She had the wisdom and experience yet he was the one who had to save her. It should've been the other way round.

And now they knew. Nora and Ren didn't say a word as they processed what she had said. The only noise in the room was the sound of her sobs. They were gonna shout at her, tell her that it was all her fault. She was ready for it. She deserved it. Her failures had nearly cost them everything and there was little that was salvaged.

She felt Nora touch her weeping face and pressed it against her shoulder. "You expected him to leave even though he knew you'd be getting into a fight?" She felt Nora giggle slightly. "Does that really sound like something he'd do, Pyrrha?"

No, she always knew he'd put up a fight, but she expected herself to put up a stronger one. "It was still my fault," she growled. "I shouldn't have encouraged him. I shouldn't have made myself look weak, so pitiful. I forced him to fight with me."

She had given him no choice. From how pathetic she looked that night, he had no other option than to help her. She had taken advantage of his sense loyalty and manipulated it.

"No," Ren said. The authority in his voice swept through the air like a hurricane. "Jaune stayed with you because you were his partner and friend. He did what anyone would do, just like how you would do it for him, and I would do it for Nora."

"He was wrong to do so. He cared too much about me than his own safety."

"Because you meant the world to him, Pyrrha. And I'm sure if given the chance, he would do it all over again to keep you safe."

If she could go back in time, she would stop him before he even made up his mind. "He wasn't supposed to be there," she mumbled again. "He was supposed to be somewhere safe. This was my fight, not his."

"If he hadn't been there, you would have died."

"So?" She could feel their horror as her words sunk in. She couldn't help herself. Her words came out like her mouth had a mind of its own, and it showed no sign of stopping. "He was supposed to live. If that meant I had to take his place, then it would've been worth-"

She heard the slap that hit her more than she felt it. It sounded strong and her head turned from the impact, but the pain didn't register. Nevertheless, her attacker had obviously put effort into it, so she gave them the courtesy to look up.

Nora's hand was twitching by her side. Fresh tears were streaming down her face, and her mouth was formed into the weakest snarl she had seen in a while. It was like the girl couldn't decide between shouting or bursting into tears. In the end, she managed to do both.

"Don't you dare finish that sentence!" she wailed. "I'm not losing anyone else! You do not get to say those things when you're around me! You don't get to say them at all! Do you understand me?"

"Nora…" There was truly nothing the girl couldn't do that left them speechless.

"Apologise!" she snapped. "Right now! Say you're sorry!

"I-I'm sorry."

"What are you sorry for?"

"I'm sorry for saying that. I'm sorry, Nora." She turned to Ren. "I'm sorry, Ren." She closed her eyes and hung her head. "I'm sorry," she whispered one last time. Tears dripped out onto the bedsheets as she quietly sobbed.

Nora was quick to cuddle with her again. She lied next to her on the bed and rested her head on her shoulder. "We loved Jaune," Nora whispered. "And we love you too, Pyrrha. So don't ever say that about yourself again. We're family. We will always be family."

"Always," Ren agreed, tenderly stroking her bandaged hand. His once tired eyes looked back at her with nothing less than love and compassion.

These people… what had she ever done to deserve them? Their presence alone was warmer than the sunlight shining down on her heavy bedsheets. Warmth. That was the only word to describe Team JNPR. Even after everything she told them, everything that happened, they still accepted and loved her. They believed she was a good person.

She wanted to believe it too.

But despite all their comforting words, something squirmed in the back of her mind. A sense of doubt that gnawed away at her like some kind of parasite. If things had been different, then yes, she would have died. But Jaune would have lived. Wasn't that what mattered in the end? She would never admit it out loud again, but her failure had cost them all their beloved leader. The person to give them direction. It now felt like they were back at square one because of her.

Pyrrha had felt guilty about things in the past, but this went beyond that. She was on trial, with herself as the judge passing the 'guilty' verdict with every breath she took. The jury, all looking like her, screamed and hissed at the sight of her. With that kind of judgment ringing in her ears, everything else sounded muted by comparison.

But there was one thing she didn't doubt. Two things actually, and they were here right next to her. With Jaune gone, Ren and Nora were all she had left. The last remnants of her life before this disaster. They were her anchors, perhaps the only thing preventing her from slipping off the deep end.

And that is why she would make sure nothing bad ever happened to them. Not to them, not to her friends and parents. No one else. Even if she had to fight tooth and nail for them, it would be forever known - that Pyrrha Nikos protected the ones she loved!

"Always," she found herself whispering back to them. Yes, always. She would always love them, always protect them.

And this time she'd get it right.

[/]

The days went by like wind.

In that time, Pyrrha often found herself walking without direction through the hospital's hallways. As part of an exercise routine, her doctors and nurses recommended her to do this at least twice a day. She was like a machine with her routine. She'd wake up, walk, pass by everyone as if they were mere shadows, then crawl back into bed and stare up at the ceiling. Rinse and repeat without feeling.

Sometimes she walked for hours. Sometimes minutes. Either way, every step she took was difficult. Not that she had any trouble walking, for her legs had been spared most of the damage. But she always felt drained when she woke up, and when she wasn't feeling drained, she felt nothing. Every step she took was like trying to walk through quicksand, and the more she walked, the more she felt herself sinking.

The world felt smaller without Team JNPR. The hospital was her world for now. An ugly box where she could do nothing but walk around its seemingly endless hallways. Sometimes when she woke up, she looked for them. For Ren, for Nora… for him.

And then she remembered.

And then she walked.

She was in another hallway. They all had names that she didn't care to remember. They all looked the same to her. Images of patients, doctors and scenery all blended into one colourless picture in her mind. Her only objective was to reach the end of the hallway, if only to eventually turn back. She felt like a wind-up toy - all function without direction.

An ear piercing scream snapped her out of her trance. It was so loud and horrific, and it echoed throughout the hallway. It was enough to make her raise her eyelids slightly. She even raised her arms that dangled by her side up to her head to cover her ears. She had heard many miserable sounds in her journeys through the hospital, but none had ever stood out like this mysterious screamer.

A girl in rich white clothes suddenly hurried out of the room and closed the door behind her. She looked panicked and tired, and her whole body was shaking. Everyone in the hospital looked much the same to her, but this girl looked too familiar to be some nobody. There was only one person she knew with that unmistakable shade of white hair.

"Weiss?" she said, speaking her mind out loud. This didn't feel like a trick from her mind, but she'd know if it was if the pale girl didn't respond.

To her relief, the girl whipped around to the sound of her voice. Her light-blue eyes widened at the sight of her. "Pyrrha?" she gasped. "Goodness, it's you. This is… it's a pleasure to see you again."

Pyrrha nodded back. Seeing another familiar face brought her some happiness. She looked towards the room she had come out of. "Was that you screaming in there?"

Weiss grimaced at the question. "No, that was Yang. She just woke up and saw…" She shuddered all of a sudden and rubbed her eyes. "Listen, do you mind if we continue this conversation somewhere else? I think I'd like to be away from here for a while."

Completely understandable. She led the girl out of the hallway, leaving the screams behind them until they couldn't hear them anymore. They walked down to the cafeteria where they could talk in peace. The one nice thing about the hospital? No one stared at her. She had been living there long enough to discover that the building was being used to care for all the survivors of Beacon. If anyone recognised her, most just saw her as another casualty. They looked away and kept to themselves. The privacy was oddly nice.

Weiss got herself and Pyrrha a coffee before sitting down. She accepted it out of politeness but had no plans to drink it. It was always too hot, even if she drowned it in milk. Even holding the cup in her hands was enough to make her tremble. She favoured colder drinks to keep herself hydrated.

"It's good to see you again, Pyrrha," Weiss said. "I was told you were in this place, but I wasn't sure which room. I had actually planned to see you after Yang."

"Good to see you too, Weiss," Pyrrha smiled. "It's odd. I feel like I haven't seen you in ages."

"Not surprising, considering all that has happened," the heiress grumbled. "I don't imagine this hospital offers much in the ways of leisurely activities. You must be incredibly bored here."

"At times. Though, I'm mostly just concerned about recovering for now." She looked down at her bandaged hands for emphasis.

"Ah, yes, of course you are. Forgive me, I should have known better."

"It's fine," Pyrrha said gently. Even in the face of chaos, Weiss still prided herself on her manners. Pyrrha had a feeling she was about to sour her own in her next question. "If you don't mind me asking, what was Yang screaming about back there?"

Weiss' eyes widened in surprise. "You really don't know? Well, I suppose I shouldn't be too shocked if you've been bedridden." She took a long sip of her coffee. The thing must have been boiling, but she worked through the heat. "Yang was in a fight trying to save Blake. She jumped in at the last second before she got killed. Blake told me as much."

"I see." Goosebumps formed on the back of her neck. She did not like where this was going.

"She survived, of course. But not without a price." Weiss took another swig of her drink like it was alcohol. When she lowered her cup, her eyes were dark and distant. "She lost an arm," she said softly. "And that back there? That was the sound of her realising it for the first time."

A long, drawn-out breath escaped Pyrrha's lips. Her box-like world suddenly became smaller. She was once again reminded that she hadn't been the only one who had suffered that night. The more days that passed, the more bad news she discovered. At least her hands would recover in time. She couldn't even imagine what Yang was feeling right now. Her heart went out to the girl.

What was she even supposed to say to that? Was she supposed to apologise? To who, Yang? The girl wouldn't be able to hear her from here. Weiss? It wasn't her who had lost an arm. Her mouth hung open in shock as her mind stumbled its way trying to find a suitable response.

"That's… very unfortunate." Regrettably, that _was_ the best one she could think of.

"Indeed," Weiss mumbled. Her hands gripped the coffee cup tighter.

"I'm… I'm sorry to hear that, Weiss."

"Yes." She tried taking another sip but realised she had finished it already. She growled and scrunched up the cup in her hand. It looked like she was going to throw it behind her, but she stopped herself before she could litter. Her manners were unbreakable. "I'll have to go back to see her after this. She shouldn't have to be alone. It's not fair to her."

Pyrrha's ears twitched. "What do you mean by that? Where's the rest of Team RWBY?"

"You're looking at them," Weiss smiled thinly. "I'm the only other one of my team here."

Her heart hammered in her chest. No, this was too much. She couldn't lose anyone else. She wouldn't be able to handle it. "Oh God, Weiss, you don't mean-"

"No, no, they're fine," Weiss frantically said, putting her fears at ease. "I just meant I'm the only other member of my team in the hospital, that's all."

Pyrrha let out a huge sigh. They were alright. Some more wounded than others, but they were all alright. That was good. "Why aren't they here though? I mean, where's Ruby? Doesn't she want to check up on her sister?"

"To my knowledge, she's currently at her home in Patch. Completely unconscious, mind you. She wasn't injured - at least, not enough to warrant medical care - but that… _thing_ she did at the tower left her drained. That's why she isn't here."

Pyrrha hummed Yes, she had heard the rumours. Apparently, the young leader of RWBY had performed some kind of spectacle that left the Grimm in her presence stunned. It was a story being passed around in the hospital. There was no way it could've been true. The girl had never shown such to possess such an ability before. However, it somehow did explain how she was able to stop Cinder from killing her when she had the chance.

After everything she had learned that night, about Maidens and magic, she wasn't sure what to believe anymore.

"What about Blake? Isn't she Yang's partner? Where is she?"

Weiss sighed. "I don't know. No one knows."

Pyrrha cocked her head in confusion. "I thought you said she was alright?"

"As far as I know, she is," Weiss muttered. It was hard to ignore the bitterness in her tone. "The last time I saw her, she was carrying Yang's body on to the rescue bullhead that night. That's how she was able to tell me what happened to her. Apart from that, I haven't seen her since. I can't even get in contact with her, she isn't answering her scroll."

The air in the room felt cold. "Do you think she's okay?"

"I said, I don't know!" Weiss snapped, before quickly backpedalling on her tone. "I'm sorry for that, Pyrrha. I'm just… she should be here for her. Yang risked her life for her, lost a limb for her, and this is how she repays-?" She took in a deep breath to control herself. "Her only excuse is that she had better be in another hospital. Otherwise, it's not fair that Yang should have to suffer alone."

Weiss had taken the words right out of her mouth. If there was one person who needed company more than her right now, it was Yang. She was also vaguely aware of the abandonment issues the blonde had. Needless to say, Blake had better be recovering somewhere else right now. Partners were supposed to stick together…

Pyrrha blinked back the tears that threatened to cloud her vision. She rested a bandaged hand gently on one of her smaller ones. "Well, she's not entirely alone," she said warmly. "You'll be here for her, Weiss. You can visit her every day." As would Pyrrha as soon as she got the chance to.

Weiss gasped and quickly pulled her hand away. "Actually, there's… something I need to tell you. It's bad news, I'm afraid." She tried to straighten her posture to no avail. "I'm moving back home to Atlas today. My father has demanded my presence there and I'm unable to refuse him. Today is my last day in Vale. Possibly forever."

A familiar ache appeared again in Pyrrha's chest. "O-Oh," was all she said. All she could manage. Every bad news she received was like a brick falling on her. She felt buried. Swamped underneath all this negativity.

"Yes, I'm afraid so," the girl grimaced. "That's why I'm here today. I was hoping to say my goodbyes to everyone before I left. But Ruby's at Patch, Blake's missing, and Yang's…" An almost demented chuckle came from her. "Oh God, it's all falling apart, Pyrrha. Everything terrible that could've happened that night happened. It's like a bad joke, honestly. Still, you've got to laugh, I suppose."

Pyrrha wasn't sure she shared the girls humour on the subject matter, but at least she had some sort of coping mechanism. She wouldn't prevent her from doing something that helped her get through the day.

"Well, at least I got to meet you again," Weiss continued. "I was worried I wasn't going to see anyone today, especially you. After hearing what you went through, I'm surprised to see you walking about."

Pyrrha shrugged. "I'm getting by," she said. "You don't have to worry about me, Weiss."

"No, of course I don't. You can handle anything that comes your way. From what it sounds though, that was a fierce battle you were in. Forgive me for checking to see if my friend is alright."

No, she wasn't alright. She probably wouldn't be for a long time. But she was alive, and that gave the heiress just a little bit of hope. Considering how they would probably never see each other again, she needed it.

"I'm honestly fine, Weiss," she said. "It's not as bad as it looks. Only thing I've got to worry about is these." She waved her bandaged hands in the air. "Otherwise, I should make a relatively easy recovery. Really, Yang is the one you should be worried about. She needs our support now more than ever."

"Well, yes… but she isn't the only one." Weiss' gaze suddenly hardened and her expression turned sympathetic. Mournful, even. Pyrrha's body tensed. She knew what was coming. There was no way of escaping it. "I wasn't sure how to approach this," Weiss began. "I've never said anything like this before. But if this really is the last time we see each other, then I had better say this now."

Pyrrha's breath deepened from what was about to happen. _Just let it happen, Pyrrha,_ she told herself. _It's like ripping off a plaster. The sooner you do it, the quicker it's over with._ That was true, but the more times she did it, the more painful it seemed to become. Each reminder drove the knife deeper and deeper into her heart.

"I miss him too," she said softly. "While he did get on my nerves at times, Jaune was a good man. He didn't deserve what happened to him, and I'm… I'm very sad to hear that he's gone." She pulled out a small tissue and wiped one of her eyes with it. "I'm sure my grief doesn't compare to yours, but for what it's worth, I am truly sorry for what happened. His death was unfair and too soon, but he died nobly. You should be proud of him. I know I am." She chuckled lightly. "He would've been over the moon to hear me say that."

A tidal wave of emotions surged through her. It seems Jaune's death was quickly becoming widespread news. However, people only knew the surface knowledge of it. How he had died fighting against Cinder. If only they knew his last moments alive were filled with blood and misery. How his last words were a broken apology to her. The memories of how he looked and how he sounded haunted her.

Died nobly? He was murdered. Murdered and then disintegrated. There was nothing dignified about how he died. It hurt her to admit that.

She almost wanted to shout at Weiss for bringing it up. She didn't need a reminder of what happened. She was suffering enough already. But the girl was just being polite. She couldn't get angry at her for expressing her condolences. She just wished she didn't have to hear them, at least not now. Maybe when she was in a better state of mind. But as Weiss said, there would probably be no next time.

Was everyone in her life disappearing in front of her?

"Thank you, Weiss," she murmured. "I… it's been difficult... " There wasn't much else she could say.

Weiss looked down sadly. "I can only imagine. I'm sorry if I've reopened fresh wounds. I just needed to say something. There was only so long I could dance around the issue."

"Your concern is appreciated." She found herself laughing slightly. "You mentioned this all seeming like a bad joke, yes? In a way, I feel the same way. I can't describe it, but… I'm still waiting for him to come back. Any second now, I expect him to walk through that door. But then I remember and…" She smiled a broken smile at the girl. "As you said. Bad joke."

Weiss looked back at her horrified. Pyrrha wasn't sure why, as she was the one to bring it up. "I knew I'd just make things worse," she muttered sadly. "Forgive me, Pyrrha. I didn't-"

"I said it's fine, Weiss. You haven't made me feel any worse." Nor had she made her feel any better, but the effort was appreciated. It was going to take more than words to lift her spirits again. "Jaune was… he was special to me, and I don't think I'll ever stop missing him. This is just the way things are now."

"Pyrrha…" A beeping sound came from Weiss' pocket. She fished out her scroll and turned stone-faced when she saw the screen. "That's my father," she said coldly. "He's waiting outside for me now. I'm sorry, but I have to go now."

Already? It felt like they had only just sat down. Weiss was already on her feet, but it was clear that even though she was in a hurry, she didn't want to leave. Whoever her father was, he must have been a very unpleasant person. Weiss' demeanour had immediately turned from concerned friend to businesswoman as soon as she saw her scroll. Another example of the world changing around her. If only she had the strength to stop it.

But naturally, there was nothing she could do. So she stood up and prepared to say goodbye to Weiss Schnee for what would probably be the last time. For some reason, she had a sickening feeling that she was going to have to get used to doing that with the people she cared for.

"It was an honour getting to know you, Pyrrha. I am proud to have been your friend." Weiss held out her hand for her to shake. Pyrrha ignored it and startled the girl by pulling her into a hug. She eventually relaxed into it.

"The pleasure was mine. I'm sorry you couldn't say goodbye to your team today."

"As am I," Weiss grumbled. "But there's nothing I can do."

"Will I ever see you again?"

She felt the girl stiffen in her arms. "I don't know," she reluctantly admitted. "That's why I wanted to make all my goodbyes today. Now it seems I won't be able to…" She relaxed again and hugged her back. "But at least I got to say goodbye to you. For that, I am grateful."

There was no hiding the hurt in her voice. With the CCT tower destroyed, communications to Vale where next to impossible. Unfortunately for Weiss, that's where the majority of her team lived. She wouldn't even be able to call them in Atlas. As far as staying in contact was concerned, Weiss may as well have been severing all ties to her team. It was a wonder how she could stay so composed despite the miserable situation. The girl truly was something else.

"If this really is the last time I see any of you again though, would you mind visiting Yang for me? I'm not sure I'll get the chance to again."

She didn't need to ask twice. "I'll do everything I can for her, Weiss," she promised. They all needed each other during this terrible time. Pyrrha was quite familiar with the feeling of loneliness. She wouldn't let anyone else she cared for experience it.

"That's all I ask," Weiss said, gently pulling back from the hug. "Until then, this is… I hesitate to say goodbye. For now, let's call this 'see you later'." A warm smile stretched across her face. "See you later, Pyrrha."

Weiss then turned around and started to walk away. Pyrrha watched the heiress leave, feeling a strange stirring feeling somewhere inside her. When she thought of Weiss, she sometimes associated her with Jaune. He had certainly pursued her enough times to make himself known in her life. Seeing Weiss again brought out old memories of him. Memories of his attempts to woo the unwilling heiress.

A question suddenly formed in her head. An old question, something she sometimes dwelled on during her time in Beacon. She couldn't let Weiss leave just yet. This was perhaps the only time she'd get an answer to it.

"Weiss, before you go," she called back, "do you mind if I ask you something?"

Weiss turned around. Luckily for Pyrrha, she still wasn't too eager to leave. "Of course, Pyrrha. Anything."

"Thank you. It's something that involves Jaune." Her body trembled slightly from nerves. "Was there… was there something I did wrong?"

Weiss smiled sadly at her. "Pyrrha, I'm sure you did everything in your power to keep him alive. You mustn't blame yourself for his death."

Pyrrha shook her head and giggled. She knew she wouldn't understand right away. "No, it's not that… well, it is slightly, but that's not what I'm talking about." She took deep breaths to control herself. She needed to be composed if she wanted to make herself clear. "Weiss, you… you think I'm pretty, right?"

Weiss frowned in confusion. "Pyrrha?"

"I mean, I think I'm pretty," she continued. "Maybe not right now, but I'm sure I was in Beacon. I was never as pretty as you though, I will admit. You always had that girly style to you that I knew would never work for me. Even now, after everything that's happened, you still look just as good as before."

"Pyrrha, where is this going?" The girl sounded genuinely nervous.

"Jaune loved you. It was hard to tell from all his silly flirts, but he had deep feelings for you. You were always on his mind. I don't know if it was your looks or personality, but you captured his heart in a way… In a way that I never could."

A weak chuckle forced its way out of her as she saw Weiss' expression. The girl was a blend of surprise, horror, and sadness. It was a well-known fact among RWBY and JNPR that she harboured feelings for her partner. The only one unaware of it was Jaune himself. She remembered another promise she had made to herself. If they made it out alive, she would confess her feelings to him.

What a delightful thing to remember right now.

"So, between us girls, what did I do wrong?"

"Pyrrha," Weiss whispered. Her voice sounded like she was tearing apart on the inside. Pyrrha couldn't help it, she had to keep going. Her mouth moved on autopilot.

"I mean, I thought I was making myself fairly obvious. I know boys are supposed to be a little dense, but maybe I wasn't trying hard enough."

"Pyrrha, please stop this," Weiss whimpered. She was walking back towards her. Tears could be seen in the corner of her eyes.

"Maybe I was too tall? Too muscular? I never really worried about boys in the past, so things like that never bothered me. He probably didn't find those things attractive in a girl. I just couldn't figure it out. How could I make him look at me the way he looked at you. What did I-"

She stopped when Weiss literally threw herself at her. She wasn't big or heavy enough to knock her off balance, but the impact was enough to cut her off. The girl wrapped her arms around her and hugged her tightly. For her part, Pyrrha just stood there stunned.

"That's enough," Weiss sobbed. "No more. I don't want to hear any more. I'm begging you, Pyrrha, stop thinking like this. Please."

Pyrrha stood still as Weiss quietly sobbed into her chest. All the energy she had when asking her question faded the moment Weiss started crying. With the adrenaline gone, her body felt like a puppet that just had its strings cut. She didn't even have the energy to return the hug. Her arms just dangled uselessly by her side.

Regret seeped through her again. She hadn't meant to make Weiss cry. She just wanted answers to an old question she had. In a world where nothing made sense anymore, she just wanted one answer she at least understood. Now all she had done was make someone upset. A friend upset. A friend she would likely never see again. A pattern was beginning to form here.

She used whatever was left of her energy to raise a hand and awkwardly rub Weiss' back. "I'm sorry, Weiss," she murmured.

"Don't be sorry," she sniffed. "Don't be sorry about anything. Just…" She pulled back and straightened herself. She would've looked impressive if her face hadn't been red and covered in tears. "You are a good person, Pyrrha Nikos. Better than most of us, including me. So I beg of you, please don't torture yourself like that. You deserve better, and you know what? He would agree with me. He wouldn't want you to spend the rest of your life punishing yourself. He'd want you to be happy. I know you believe me."

Jaune wanted her to be happy. Jaune wanted her to be safe. Pyrrha wanted the same thing for him. But it seemed some partners were better than others when it came to keeping promises.

"A-Anyway, I should go now," Weiss sniffed. She pinched both sides of her skirt and gave her a parting curtsey. "It's been a pleasure, Pyrrha. Please try and remember what I said. Not just for your sake, but for his, mine, and everyone who cares about you. Until we see each other again."

Weiss then turned her back on her once again and exited the cafeteria. Pyrrha stood rooted to the spot as she watched her leave. She remained there until the girl disappeared from sight. Even then, she stood there waiting until it was clear that she wasn't coming back this time. Weiss' final words echoed in her head.

Would she be disappointing people if she told them she didn't want to be happy? Sure, they said she deserved happiness, but _she_ didn't feel like she did. And if she didn't feel that way, then what was the point? Her partner was dead. Her team was fractured. Her friends were leaving her. What was there to be happy about?

Everything felt pointless now. All the plans she had for everyone. The places she wanted to see, the adventures she wanted to have. Ashes. They burned with the rest of Beacon. Now here she was, living in the aftermath. It was all over.

What was she supposed to do now?

It took her a moment to realise she was now the only person in the canteen. Silence was such a familiar sound to her that she hadn't realised it right away. Weiss had been a wonderful distraction, but now she was alone again. Her eyes scanned the empty room until they noticed the crumpled coffee cup Weiss had left behind.

She trudged over to it and picked it up, inspecting it. It still smelt like the type of coffee she usually had. There were small holes in the cup from where her nails dug in. Whether Weiss had intended it or not, she had left behind a memento of herself for Pyrrha. A reminder of the no-nonsense, proud and determined girl. It would be a shame to bin it.

Pyrrha took the crumpled coffee cup with her and exited the cafeteria. Somewhere across the hospital, her bed called for her. She was hardly tired, but it felt like an invisible cord had wrapped around her neck and was now pulling her towards it. In her mind, she knew it was where she belonged right now. She had been outside for too long. The outside hurt. It was time to head back.

Her doctors were insistent that she spend as long as possible in bed. How her injuries needed time to recover. She supposed they were right. She couldn't fight, she could barely talk and move. All she could do was lie down and wait for her wounds to recover.

She made her way back to her room and crawled into her bed. There she lay still, staring up at the cracks in the ceiling as she waited for her body to recover.

She'd worry about the rest of her some other time.

* * *

 **The only thing harder than understanding grief is writing it.**

 **This whole thing was a tricky one to write, mostly because I was so desperate to get everything right. I'm one of those writers that spend hours at his keyboard, looking at his screen and erasing and rewriting every word. It sure is a struggle. Still, I'm pretty happy with how this turned out.**

 **My main change here is the conflict between Weiss and Pyrrha. In the original, Pyrrha got angry at Weiss as she didn't understand what Jaune saw in Weiss, causing Weiss to slap her. This though I feel is more in touch with Pyrrha's character, and it feels more emotional. Apart from that, not many changes, but trust me, it's different.**

 **I'll see if I can get these things out sooner, but no promises. There's a dissertation that sings to me most days. Oh, blessed third year, how you punish me so.**


	3. Chapter 3

**It's been a year? Huh, my watch must be wrong. Oh well, here we are.**

 **Special thanks to Aetheling for looking over this chapter for me. Check him out if you've got the time. His upload schedule is almost as terrible as mine.**

* * *

 **Cover art - powerfulpomegranate**

* * *

Black was never her colour, and dresses were never her choice of clothing. Combine the two together, along with her recent injuries, Pyrrha felt like a catwalk disaster.

Her reflection mirrored her disappointment. The dress, for all intents and purposes, was fine. Sure, it didn't exactly compliment her muscular physique, and yes, the colour was darker than anything even Blake would wear. But it was formal, appropriate, and it fitted her. It was fine.

Still, she couldn't shake the fact that it would look better on anyone else but her. Her skin was the first problem. Thanks to her burns, she looked like someone tried to dress a peach in a pair of black curtains. She had the kind of skin that made people cringe when they saw it. She was a literal eyesore.

And then there were her hands. Her ugly, mangled, mummified hands. Until her aura fixed them, they were staying wrapped up and hidden away. The bandages made her look as broken as she felt. Her body was falling apart, and the dress was basically serving as damage control.

She turned her body, trying to get a look from a better angle. She winced when the dress brushed against her delicate skin. Pointless. No matter which way she looked at it, she still looked ridiculous.

In the mirror, she saw her mother approaching her. It was quite amazing how she had inherited everything else from her mother, except her height. No, that she had gotten from her father. She looked so small compared to Pyrrha. Yet it was only Pyrrha who felt tiny right now.

Andrea Nikos adjusted her glasses. "How do you feel?" she asked.

 _Like a monster._

Pyrrha bit her lip. "It's… hard to say," she said.

"The dress looks beautiful on you. But how do you feel? Does it hurt your skin? Is it uncomfortable?"

"It stings a little," Pyrrha admitted. "But it's nothing to be concerned about."

"Are you sure?"

"I'll be fine, Mom. It's only gonna be for one day. I can handle one day."

"It doesn't have to be this one. We can look for one that's a little lighter if you want."

"Lighter?" Pyrrha chuckled. "If it were any lighter, I'd be wearing thin air. And isn't this the softest one they have?"

"We can find another shop," Andrea insisted. "We can look all day if you want. Or we can get you something else, whatever's easier on your skin. It doesn't have to be a dress."

"That's really not necessary."

"I just don't want you to be in pain, sweetheart."

Pyrrha winced as she heard that familiar, caring tone in her mother's voice. How long had it been since she heard it? Ever since she grew up, her mother always had full confidence in her. Everyone did. Who wouldn't believe in the Champion of Mistral?

Now here she was, defeated, miserable, and fretting about a dress. She had fought hordes of Grimm and dangerous criminals, and now a dress was her biggest obstacle. How could anyone believe in her, when she couldn't even believe in herself?

To be honest, it made little difference in what she wore these days. Everything felt like sandpaper rubbing against her. She hadn't realised how sensitive her skin was when she was in the hospital. At the time, she was too numb to feel the pain. Now, she had the opposite problem - she felt everything.

"I don't care if it hurts," she said. "I'm wearing this tomorrow."

After all, what else were you supposed to wear to a funeral?

She felt her mother's fingers brush against her bandaged ones. It was the closest thing that came to handholding for her these days. Her scarred flesh wouldn't allow anything more.

Pyrrha swallowed a lump in her throat. "I don't think I can do this," she whispered.

"Pyrrha…"

"I don't want to say goodbye. I can't do it. It's not fair."

It took all of her strength to stop her from tearing up in public. She glared at her reflection, ordering it to not show any weakness.

"It's not going to be goodbye," Andrea said softly. "Your partner… no one's ever truly gone. He will always be with you."

 _'For it is in passing that we achieve immortality.'_

The words used to inspire hope in her, but now they sounded like a big joke. The dead stayed dead no matter how you honoured them. What good was immortality if you weren't alive to enjoy it?

"It's too soon," Pyrrha croaked.

"You're going to be fine, sweetheart. I know things look bleak right now, but you've always been a fighter. You will pull through this. You always do."

"And what if I don't?"

"You will."

"I don't know how you can say that."

"Because I know you, Pyrrha," Andrea said confidently. "And I know that you are the strongest girl in the world. It's going to be alright. And who knows, you might find tomorrow could bring you some peace."

"Peace?" Pyrrha echoed.

"Well, not peace exactly. But it'll probably help you… accept what has happened. That acceptance might help put your mind at rest."

"That doesn't make any sense, Mom."

"I don't expect it to yet," she sighed. "But it will in time. Just be patient with yourself, sweetheart. This won't last forever. You will find happiness again."

Pyrrha didn't bet on it. "If you say so," she said, voice devoid of hope.

What her mother didn't know was that Pyrrha had already accepted what happened. And what happened was, she had let him down. Jaune was dead because she had let him down. Her team was broken because she had let them down. Beacon was destroyed because she had let everyone down.

Her fault. Everything was her fault.

Nora came up behind them, wearing a dress of her own. When she caught sight of Pyrrha, she gasped.

"Wow, you look amazing, Pyrrha!" she breathed.

Andrea smiled. "Doesn't she just? The dress looks perfect on her, don't you think?"

"Oh, you know it. I swear, Pyrrha, if you weren't a huntress, you could've easily taken up modelling."

Nora always managed to get a laugh out of Pyrrha, even if it was small. "Modelling? Even with these?" She waved her heavily bandaged hands out in front of her.

"No one will notice those," Andrea assured her. "And even if they do, what of it? Let them stare. They're not the ones who fought a fierce battle against an army of Grimm and the White Fang."

"That's right," Nora nodded. "And if anyone starts getting judgy because of that, they can answer to me. I'll make 'em show some respect." She then did a small twirl, showing off her dress. "I really like the design on this one. Whaddya think? Does it look good on me?"

It absolutely did. For such a rowdy girl, she really pulled of dresses, looking almost as elegant as Weiss in them. She looked a million times better than Pyrrha, that's for sure.

"You look marvellous," Pyrrha said honestly.

Nora blushed slightly. "Marvelous? Aw shucks, there's no need to overdo it," she said, her voice sounding unusually shy for someone like her.

"Pyrrha's right, you look beautiful, dear," Andrea agreed. "I'll pay for it later, if that's really the one you want."

Nora's eyes widened and she started to protest. "Whoa, hold on now, I can't have you pay for it, Mrs Nikos. That'd be-"

"I insist. It's the least I can do for our resident heroes."

The two of them missed the way Pyrrha glowered at the mention of that word. If they were capable, her fingers would've tightened into fists.

"Well, only if it's okay with you," Nora said. "It's just as well actually, as I'm pretty sure I've got no money left. I'm just gonna quickly change. See you in a sec."

Nora quickly ran back to her changing room, nearly bumping into someone as she did.

"Such a lovely girl," Andrea said. "I'm glad you've made such good friends."

"My team is family to me," Pyrrha murmured.

"Of course. Well, needless to say, you've chosen yours wisely. Ren seems like a nice boy too."

"He is."

"You've all done so well coping with this."

Pyrrha didn't respond.

She felt her mother's fingers brush against hers again. "I'm proud of you, Pyrrha," she said sincerely.

Pyrrha's lips tightened. "I should… probably change now," she said. She wanted this conversation to be over.

"Alright. I'll wait for you by the checkout." She shot her one last promising smile. "You're going to be fine tomorrow."

Pyrrha nodded wordlessly, then slipped back behind the curtain to change into her normal clothes. Small hisses escaped her lips every time the dress brushed against her. Damn these burns. Aura would normally ease the pain, but they were already working overtime on her hands. She didn't want to waste it on some petty skin irritation, no matter how much it stung.

Her 'normal' clothes consisted of a baggy pair of trousers, and a loose shirt that made sure to cover her arms. She was never a fashionable girl, but even she knew she looked like a slob. Normally, she'd never be caught dead wearing something like that. But it was currently the only thing that felt comfortable on her, skin and kept the sun away from it. Function over fashion.

But nothing could fix the sunken look on her face. It was plastered on her, and she doubted it would leave anytime soon. She already looked like a wreck, so she couldn't imagine what she was going to be like tomorrow.

Gods, tomorrow… her mother was wrong. It was going to be goodbye. And she was not ready.

[/]

Many people had died during the 'Fall of Beacon', as it was now officially named. Most of the deaths were confirmed and named. But not all of them. Pyrrha's heart went out to the unlucky families of those individuals. She felt knives pierce her when Jaune's name was called out.

She loosely held Nora's hand throughout it all who, in turn, was holding Ren's hand. Pyrrha felt Nora's grip tremble when they heard their leader's name. She looked at her and saw her with head hung low. If she was crying, she refused to let anyone see it. Ren, ever the stoic one, held his gaze firmly forward. Many times, she had envied his mental strength. Now, all the more so.

General Ironwood held the service, looking like he wanted to be anywhere else. The sight of him was depressing; unkempt hair, tired eyes, a thick stubble. Despite the microphone, his voice sounded distant and small. If Pyrrha was broken, then he was absolutely shattered. To anyone else, he may have looked unwell, but Pyrrha knew better. The once proud general was barely a shell of his former self.

It wasn't a long service, merely a few speeches of how 'we will never forget' and a summary of what the rest of Remnant would do to aid Vale. It ended with a minute silence out of respect for the fallen.

Pyrrha's senses were on high alert the entire time. Her training had pretty much given her eyes in the back of her head at this point. She didn't need to turn around to know someone was looking at her, and not because of her celebrity status. It felt like burning coals were placed on the back of her neck. She did her best to keep her eyes forward.

When it was over, Nora was the first to smile. "We did it," she said weakly. "Wow... anyone else feeling floppy?

"I feel like I could collapse right now," Pyrrha admitted.

"This is a day I wished would never happen," Ren said, staring off into space. "It does get easier. The pain, I mean. It doesn't go away... but it does get easier."

"Yeah…"

"Come on, now," Nora said. "Jaune wouldn't want us moping around. Whaddya say we try to make the most out of the day while we still have it? That sounds like something he'd suggest."

"Do you have anything in mind?" Pyrrha asked.

"Well, no… but anything's better than just feeling sad all day. I wanna feel like he's still here with us. Because, in a way he is, you know? He's with all of us."

Nora's warm attitude rekindled a bit of Pyrrha's spirit. "You're right, that is something he'd suggest. Maybe you should be the new leader now, Nora?"

Nora shook her head. "Jaune's always gonna be our leader. But at least by doing something nice, I feel a little closer to him. I…"

She paused and her eyes started to water. Ren was quick to come to her aid, pulling her into a hug.

"Well, after everything you've been through, I think you three all deserve a break," Baldrick said. "On the way back, we'll stop for something to eat. Pick anywhere you want, it's our treat. It's the least we can do for you."

Nora's eyes were a little red when she looked back up. "I like pancakes," she mumbled.

Ren laughed a little at that. "Pancakes would be lovely, Mr Nikos."

Pyrrha nodded in agreement.

Before they could leave, General Ironwood stepped down from the altar and approached Pyrrha. "Pardon me, Ms Nikos, but may I speak to you in private?" he asked.

All eyes were on her. Pyrrha failed to give an answer. She didn't know what this was about.

Her father stepped in between them. "What for?" he asked in a dangerous, low voice. The two were matched evenly in height, and possibly in strength.

The general held his ground. "Nothing bad, I assure you, sir," he said calmly. "But I'm afraid it's something I cannot disclose in public. I only ask for a moment of her time."

Her father turned to her. "You don't have to go with him if you don't want to, Pyrrha," he said.

Truth be told, she was tempted to refuse the general. The last time she had a private talk with him was the day her life was changed forever. But looking at him now, it was hard to harbour a grudge towards him. Pyrrha pitied him. A moment of her time seemed reasonable to her.

"I don't mind," she said.

"Thank you," Ironwood said. "I promise this won't take long. This way, please."

He led her to a small room that he had made his office for the time being. The air freshener was doing its best to make the room smell less like a bar. A newspaper had been crumpled up and thrown in the bin. On the desk was a bottle of expensive-looking whiskey. It had a note that said _'To James. From Qrow.'_

It wasn't full.

"I suppose you're wondering what this is all about," he said. When he walked past the whiskey, Pyrrha saw his fingers twitch temptingly.

"Kind of," she said.

"Well, it's pretty important. At least, I believe it is. Don't worry, I'm not going to ask you to do anything."

He went behind the desk and opened one of the drawers. He pulled out a small black box from inside.

"Normally, there'd be some form of ceremony for this," he said. "But there isn't any time for that, and I suspect you aren't interested, so I'll get to the point."

He flipped open the lid and Pyrrha saw what was inside - a medal. It looked like a silver star with Atlas' insignia in the centre of it.

"Pyrrha Nikos," he announced. "For your sacrifice, bravery, and service to the people of Remnant, you are hereby awarded the Atlesian Iron Star, and all commodities that come with it. Congratulations."

Pyrrha carefully took the medal out of the box. She could feel the history and the respect it commanded emanating from the metal. It felt so delicate, not something to be held in ruined hands like hers.

Or, indeed, someone like her in general.

"This is for me?" she asked.

"It is."

"But I'm not a soldier. Are you even allowed to give this to me?"

"There's probably some protocol against it, but to hell with that. If there's one thing I swear to do right in my career, it's to reward a hero for what she's owed."

Her eye twitched angrily. "I'm no hero, General."

"No?"

"No. You'd be better off giving this to someone else."

"No one else deserves it. It is yours alone, Ms Nikos."

"If I was even half the hero you think I am, none of this would've happened. I would've become the Fall Maiden, I would've stopped Cinder-"

"Enough."

"But General-!"

"That's enough," he said softly. "You are a hero, Ms Nik- may I call you Pyrrha?"

"Of course."

"Thank you. You are a hero, Pyrrha, you just don't realise it yet. Under your current circumstances, I don't blame you. I understand what you're going through."

"Then you understand why I can't accept this."

"You can give it back if you want. But the medal will always be yours. It's what you deserve."

"But I… I killed Penny! She was one of your own, and now she's dead because of me! You can't reward me for that!"

In the back of her mind, she could see Penny's lifeless eyes staring back at her. She remembered that blank expression on her face as everything shut down. She may have been a robot, but she was still a person. In the end, however, she was now just another life she had failed to protect.

He sighed. "Penny can be rebuilt, Pyrrha. And I don't blame you for what happened. I've seen you fight. You're not the type to lose control like that. There must have been something going on behind the scenes."

"I really didn't mean to, sir. It was an accident. I thought I saw-"

"I know. I know." He ran his fingers through his hair, suddenly looking drained. "Gods… look what we've done to you. We've dragged a child into this war of ours. What have we become?"

"Sir?"

"You can drop the formalities if you want. I understand if you hate me. Hate all of us for what we made you do. To be honest, I'm surprised you've managed to tolerate me for this long. I half expected you to tell me to piss off when I asked to speak with you."

Pyrrha swallowed. The Fall Maiden project had reared its ugly head again. Another reminder of how foolish she was for thinking she could escape her destiny.

"You didn't make me do anything, sir. You asked me to become the Fall Maiden. You gave me a choice."

"A choice," he scoffed. "Yes, please become the one person who can save us all, because no one else can do it and we're all depending on you. Some choice we gave you."

"This war is everyone's war. We're all going to have to make sacrifices sooner or later."

"It's not the same. Most soldiers understand what they're signing up for. You… you had no idea what was going to happen. Neither did we, yet we asked you anyway. We asked a child… a child…"

"... I admit, there was a time when I did dislike you," she said carefully. "It felt unfair that such a fate was thrust upon me so suddenly. I was scared. I felt truly alone. And I blamed all of you for that."

The general looked like he really wanted that drink now. Self-loathing made up his entire being.

"And while I'm still not happy that it had to be me… I am a huntress," she said evenly. "I was doing my duty as a protector of Remnant's people. You have nothing to apologise for."

The smile on his face was cracked, like his face wasn't used to such an expression. "Has anyone ever told you that you might be _too_ kind?"

"More than I care to admit."

"Well, I'm not complaining. It's nice to talk to someone who doesn't despise me. I take it you heard the whispers from some of the audience?"

"I didn't pay them any attention."

"But you did hear them, yes?"

"... it was hard to miss."

"They hate me. Most of them blame me for a lot of the deaths that night. After all, not everyone died to the Grimm and the White Fang. To some, the last thing they saw was an Atlesian Knight aiming down its sights at them."

The virus. How terrifying it must have been for those poor people, to see the robots that were supposed to protect them turn their guns on them. That haunting red glow emitting from their visors gave Pyrrha the chills.

"I'm very sorry, General."

"Don't be," he grunted. "They have the right of it. I hate myself for what happened too."

"It wasn't your fault. It was Cinder's virus that corrupted them. People shouldn't blame you."

"Vale was under Atlas' protection. It was I who ordered the Knights and Paladins to be shipped out, despite them being new technology. It was my plan. My battalion. My responsibility."

He sat down in his chair and let out a long sigh, like it was the first time he had rested in hundreds of years. Some of his stress left him when he exhaled, but quickly returned once he inhaled again.

"I don't like the situation I'm in at all," he said. "But it is deserved. If there's one other person at fault for what happened that night, it's me."

"What's going to happen to you?"

"I'll probably be stripped of my rank - in fact, count on it. I'll be lucky if any soldier of good standing even gives me the time of day."

"I'm sorry." Truly, she was. As tough as the decision he asked of her was, he did it for the good of everyone. He didn't deserve this.

"I told you, don't apologise. I'm ready to take responsibility for my actions. A good soldier knows never to back down without a fight. I'll bounce back from this. It'll just take time."

"Is there anything I can do to help?"

"No, this is my mess to clean. I won't get you involved in things that don't concern you. You've done enough for us. Just take some time off. Recover. And above all else, don't be so hard on yourself."

She felt that gnawing feeling in her soul. That's right, recover like a good little casualty. It's all she was good for now. She was just another one of the _wounded_.

"With respect, General, you aren't the only one who feels like they've failed in their duty," she grumbled.

"I know. So, from one failure to another: give yourself a break. You've earned it."

She had too many arguments in her head, and not enough time to say them all.

"... everyone's probably wondering where I am," she said awkwardly. "I should probably go."

"Of course," he nodded. "I hope we meet again, under nicer circumstances."

Before she left, she turned to look at him one last time. "Just so you know… I was going to do it. I even tried that night. I'm sorry I didn't do it sooner."

"Remnant thanks you for your service, Pyrrha. Now get some rest."

She kept the medal when she left the office.

[/]

The cool autumn breeze whistled past her. The cloudless sky beamed down warm rays of sunlight. Pyrrha scowled. The weather was awful. She had been expecting rain and thunder for today. This kind of weather was too beautiful for a funeral.

Her eyes gazed at the scenery before her. The church was built outside a vast meadow, complete with rolling hills and shimmering green grass. There was a plaque soon to be built there, in memory of the dead.

This lovely landscape was to be Jaune's final resting place.

She was dimly aware of her skin crying out from being exposed to the sunlight. She couldn't be bothered trying to get into the shade. Let it sting for all she cared. What difference did it make?

She closed her eyes and tried to focus on the birds chirping, or the bristling sound the trees would make when the wind blew against them. It felt almost like peace.

"You…" a voice whispered behind her.

Pyrrha turned around. Standing behind her were two women. The first had pale skin and blonde hair. Her blue eyes were wide, like she was looking at a ghost. The other was tanned, had dark hair and wore glasses. She looked friendlier than her counterpart. Both of them looked to be in their late twenties.

"Um, hello?" Pyrrha said. Were they fans? That was the last thing she needed right now.

The tanned one stepped forward, a kind smile on her face. "It's nice to meet you, Ms Nikos," she said. "Goodness, you're a lot taller than what you seem on TV. That dress looks beautiful on you."

The blonde one wasn't saying a word. Her silence made Pyrrha uncomfortable. Did those wide eyes ever blink?

"Thank you?" Pyrrha said. "And it's okay, you can call me Pyrrha. Ms Nikos makes me sound like a teacher."

"Oh heavens, where are my manners? I'm Terra Cotta. This is my fiance, Saphron Arc."

Arc?

Pyrrha felt cold dread seep into her as she looked at Saphron. Blonde hair, blue eyes…

Oh no…

Saphron walked slowly towards her. "He always spoke about you," she said in that quiet, painful voice.

"Saph," Terra warned. She ignored her.

"When he told me you were his partner, I didn't believe him. Even when he showed me the pictures. Jaune always had a big imagination. Pyrrha Nikos, the Champion of Mistral, my brother's partner? It didn't seem real."

Pyrrha's voice failed her. Her heart hammered in her chest. Her head felt faint.

"But here you are. You look perfect - better than perfect. The Invincible Girl, alive without a scratch. Here you are… and now he's gone…"

"Saphron!" Terra snapped.

In a flash, Spahron's hands gripped her shoulders, nails digging into her red flesh. The pain was fierce, but the agony in her heart eclipsed it. Yet still, Pyrrha made no noise. She couldn't.

"Why didn't you do something?" she wailed, tears streaming down her eyes. "Aren't you supposed to be the best? Why didn't you save him?"

"Alright, that's enough!" Terra shouted, coming over to drag _Jaune's sister_ away.

"You abandoned him, didn't you?" Saphron hissed. "You were his partner! He looked up to you, trusted you, and you left him for dead! You got my brother killed!"

Terra wretched her away from Pyrrha. "Have you lost your goddamn mind?" Terra yelled at her. "Leave her alone!"

" _Leave her alone_?" Saphron sneered. "Oh, I'm _sorry_. Am I hurting her feelings? This is all her fault, Terra!"

"Listen to yourself! You need to get a grip!"

"My baby brother is dead because of her!"

"Enough!" Terra pointed to the church. "Turn around and walk away! I'll deal with this! For God's sake, sort yourself out!"

"I'm not going anywhere! This is my brother's _grave_!" She spat out the last word.

"We'll come back after this is dealt with! Right now, you need to calm down and think about what you just said to this poor girl!"

Saphron, too worn out to argue anymore, relented. She shot Pyrrha one last hateful glare, before storming off back to the church, where presumably the rest of Jaune's family were waiting.

Pyrrha was rooted to the spot. Any movement felt like a mistake. Her lips had been silently mouthing the words 'I'm sorry' the entire time.

Terra's face was wracked with guilt. "I am so sorry about her," she sighed. "The things she said… disgraceful."

"It's fine," Pyrrha murmured, her voice hoarse and shattered. "I deserved that."

"No, you didn't," she said firmly. "I know she's in pain - we all are - but what she did was completely unacceptable. Don't listen to her." She shook her head. "I'm an idiot. I knew she was easy to lash out. I just didn't expect this from her."

"She is right, though. I was there when it happened. I could have done something more. But Cinder... she was unlike anything I had fought before. I didn't know what to do…"

"Cinder... that's who the news is saying was responsible for all this. Was she really that bad?"

"She was a nightmare..."

Terra placed her hand on Pyrrha's shoulder. Unlike Saphron, her grip was gentle. "Honey, I'm not a huntress. I don't know the dangers you guys face. But what I do know is if that woman was too much for even you, that must've been a serious fight you two were in.

"That Cinder bitch is the one responsible for Jaune's death, not you. Deep down, Saph knows this. She's just looking for someone to blame, and unfortunately, she chose you. Mark my words, this isn't over. I _will_ be speaking to her more about this. She's not gonna get away with what she said that easily."

If only she had never been asked to become the Fall Maiden. That would've made things so much easier. Pyrrha would've still been grieving, but at least she would've known she did all she could to save Jaune's life.

What his family didn't know though, was that there was a plan b. If they knew about that, she doubted she'd be getting the same warm reception from Terra as she was right now. If anything, she'd be as vengeful as Saphron.

Pyrrha forced a smile. "You know, it's funny," she said. "I was hoping I'd get the chance to meet his family one day. Apparently, it's a big one."

Terra laughed. "That's an understatement. Saphron's one of seven sisters. Her parents were brave, having eight kids. I think Saph and I will only be able to manage one."

"Yes, Jaune told me he had a lot of sisters. I didn't believe him at first, especially because of how terrible a flirt he was with some of the girls. Though, it would explain his dancing skills."

"A flirt, eh? Oh dear. He must've been cheering on the inside when he found out you were his partner. Did he try to smooth talk you too?"

Pyrrha's face dropped slightly. "No." She couldn't hide the disappointment in her voice.

Terra recognised her tone. "Oh… oh, honey, I'm sorry," she said sympathetically.

Pyrrha shrugged. "I can't complain. I never seized the chance when he was… there's no point thinking about it now."

"Y-Yes, of course." Terra cleared her throat. "So, what was he like as a partner, if you don't mind me asking?"

Where to begin?

"Everything I could have asked for," she said. "He was kind, loyal, considerate. And stronger than you'd expect for a teenager who goes to bed in a Pumpkin Pete onesie."

"Haha, that thing? His sisters put that in his luggage as a joke. We never expected him to actually wear it. Mind you, he was fond of that hoodie."

Memories came flooding back to Pyrrha. "Oh, you know it. He wore that hoodie everywhere, even under his armour. He'd rarely take it off. He was such a fan of it, I'm surprised he didn't recognise me for the first time."

Terra gawped. "Are you serious? He didn't recognise one of the best tournament fighters in the world?"

"I know. I was surprised as you are. Mind you, it was for the best. He was the first person to treat me like a normal girl after so long. He was exactly the kind of friend I needed."

It was strange how talking about him like this eased some of her pain. Reliving the good old days almost made her forget recent events.

Terra looked at the meadow. "His family told me he had a hard time growing up," she said. "For what it's worth, I'm glad he was able to meet such great people before the end."

And there it was again.

"Do me a favour," Pyrrha said. "When you next see his family… tell them I'm sorry."

"Pyrrha-"

"Please. I don't think I can do it myself."

Terra looked like she wanted to hug her, but Pyrrha's angry red skin was a deterrent. She hated that look everyone gave her, like she was a house of cards that would collapse from one touch.

She wasn't some fragile weakling. She was supposed to be a champion, a huntress. She wasn't weak.

She wasn't weak!

"Listen," Terra said softly. "In case no one else says it, let me say it now: thank you for making his final years worth living. He always wanted to be a huntsman, ever since he was little. Thank you for believing in him and his dream."

 _I sent him to his death._

Overwhelmed, Pyrrha was once again at a loss for words. A simple nod was all she could manage.

"I should probably go," Terra said. "I need to make sure Saph's okay. I'll leave you to make your peace. Look after yourself, honey. Please."

As Terra made her way back to the church, Pyrrha once again found herself alone. She walked over to the spot where the plaque would be built. She closed her eyes. If she concentrated, perhaps she could feel some semblance of his presence in the air?

She focused on whatever she could remember; the times where they laughed, fought together, even those rare moments where they argued. Anything to keep his spirit alive. She concentrated.

After a few minutes, she opened her eyes.

Nothing.

It was just her in an empty meadow. Nothing else.

"Pyrrha," came her mother's voice from behind. "If you're ready, we'll make our way home now."

Home… Mistral. Not Beacon. Beacon was gone now.

She wasn't weak. She just wasn't strong enough.

"It's over," Pyrrha murmured in a defeated voice. "Time to go home…"

Goodbye, Jaune.

* * *

 **Another chapter of the rewrite done, this time with how I handled the funeral scene. I've always wanted to include Ironwood in one of my stories in some way. In the beginning, he just seemed like a typical army general to me, nothing really interesting to write about. But then came Volume 4, and I loved the disgraced look about him. The poor guy must be getting shitons of abuse for what happened during the Fall. Sure, it's not technically his fault for the robots being corrupted, but still.**

 **In the original fic, I had an OC of one of Jaune's sisters confront Pyrrha in the field. I was gonna replace it with Jaune's mum in this new version, but then Volume 6 threw me a bone with the appearance of Saphron. I knew what I had to do.**

 **Sorry for the delay for this. Uni was busy for me, and I wanted to focus on writing a few other things. Now that I'm back, I will try to get updates out as frequently as possible. This chapter isn't as long as the previous two, but that's because I'm working on a writing style where I try not to fill a chapter with too much unnecessary detail. I find that when I'm proofreading something, and my eyes skip a paragraph, that paragraph can probably go. That said, I will always try to maintain high quality with each of my chapters.**


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